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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 · game · pit · jam · staff · club · snap · tear

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. staff — employees
  3. club — for dancing
  4. tear — to rip
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. tear — from crying
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. club — for golf
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. tear — from crying
  12. pit — in a race
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. staff — a stick
  15. snap — to click
  16. staff — employees
  17. pit — a hole
  18. cell — in biology
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. game — a match
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. cell — a phone
  23. club — a group
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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