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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: dip · land · pit · cue · tear · chest · wake · fan

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. chest — a box
  3. pit — a hole
  4. cue — a hint
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. cue — a signal
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. tear — to rip
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. chest — of your body
  13. land — ground
  14. chest — of your body
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. land — to come down
  17. wake — a trail
  18. cue — for pool
  19. tear — from crying
  20. dip — to sink
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. tear — from crying
  23. land — a country
  24. dip — a sauce

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