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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: pit · snap · cold · object · lie · track · date · arm

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. object — an aim
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. cold — an illness
  5. object — to protest
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. object — a thing
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. cold — not warm
  13. track — a song
  14. snap — to click
  15. track — a path
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. date — the fruit
  18. pit — in a race
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. pit — a hole
  24. track — to keep track

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