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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: chest · fork · tear · cell · sharp · key · pitcher · pit

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  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. tear — from crying
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. fork — in a road
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. key — for a lock
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pit — in a race
  8. key — the most important part
  9. chest — a box
  10. key — in music
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. cell — in biology
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. tear — to rip
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. sharp — clever
  18. pit — a hole
  19. chest — of your body
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. tear — from crying
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. cell — a phone
  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