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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: cell · content · pound · race · leaves · pit · kid · mark

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. pit — in a race
  4. cell — a phone
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. race — the arms race
  8. pound — a weight
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. content — happy
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. content — the amount
  14. mark — a trace
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. race — humankind
  17. mark — a grade
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. pit — a hole
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. kid — to tease
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — child
  24. cell — in biology

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