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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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Word bank
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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: race · pit · spring · wound · kick · date · mine · suit

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. kick — in football
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. spring — a coil
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. race — humankind
  7. suit — in cards
  8. suit — to fit
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. race — the arms race
  11. suit — clothes
  12. spring — the season
  13. race — a contest
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. wound — an injury
  17. pit — a hole
  18. date — the fruit
  19. wound — an injury
  20. spring — of water
  21. mine — for digging
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. pit — in a race

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