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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 120 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: pit · cell · kid · squash · mug · bore · track · rule

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. track — to keep track
  3. kid — to tease
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. cell — a phone
  6. pit — in a race
  7. track — a path
  8. squash — to crush
  9. rule — a law
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. rule — government
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. cell — in biology
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. bore — to tire
  16. mug — a cup
  17. pit — a hole
  18. mug — a face
  19. mug — to rob
  20. bore — to drill
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. track — a song
  24. kid — child

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