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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mark · pit · foot · land · last · arm · chip · mine

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. pit — a hole
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. foot — a measure
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. land — a country
  8. mine — for digging
  9. mark — a grade
  10. land — ground
  11. chip — for betting
  12. last — to go on
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. land — to come down
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. last — finally
  18. mark — a trace
  19. last — final
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. chip — to eat
  23. pit — in a race
  24. mine — belonging to me

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com