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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 116 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: bat · wind · pit · drill · rash · cue · bark · deal

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. wind — moving air
  3. drill — army training
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. deal — to handle
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. pit — in a race
  9. drill — the tool
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bat — the animal
  12. pit — a hole
  13. drill — a practice
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. cue — a signal
  16. rash — hasty
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. cue — for pool
  20. cue — a hint
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bark — to shout
  23. rash — a series
  24. bat — for baseball

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