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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: foot · object · pitcher · toast · pit · chest · kick · mine

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. mine — for digging
  3. object — to protest
  4. chest — of your body
  5. kick — in football
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. object — an aim
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. chest — of your body
  10. object — a thing
  11. chest — a box
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. pit — a hole
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. toast — bread
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. pit — in a race
  22. foot — a measure
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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