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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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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: club · suit · sharp · spring · land · drill · pit · rock

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. club — for dancing
  3. club — a group
  4. spring — the season
  5. suit — clothes
  6. rock — music
  7. land — to come down
  8. drill — army training
  9. land — ground
  10. drill — the tool
  11. drill — a practice
  12. rock — a stone
  13. spring — of water
  14. pit — in a race
  15. land — a country
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. spring — a coil
  18. suit — in cards
  19. suit — to fit
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. sharp — clever
  23. pit — a hole
  24. club — for golf

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