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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: dip · pit · wind · race · prune · bowl · mine · wake

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. race — the arms race
  3. wake — a trail
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. prune — to trim
  10. dip — to sink
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. race — humankind
  13. wind — moving air
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. pit — in a race
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. race — a contest
  18. mine — for digging
  19. pit — a hole
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. prune — to trim
  22. wind — moving air
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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