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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. rush — hurry
  5. sharp — clever
  6. last — final
  7. mate — a partner
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. last — finally
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. hand — in cards
  12. bear — the animal
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. prune — to trim
  15. hand — help
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. mine — for digging
  18. prune — to trim
  19. last — to go on
  20. mate — a friend
  21. mate — to breed
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bear — to put up with

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