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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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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: mug · date · chest · cold · racket · rock · rest · pit

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. pit — a hole
  3. date — the fruit
  4. rest — what's left
  5. pit — in a race
  6. chest — a box
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. cold — not warm
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. rock — a stone
  12. mug — a face
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. rest — a break
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. mug — a cup
  18. cold — an illness
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. chest — of your body
  21. rest — what's left
  22. mug — to rob
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. rock — music

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