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

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. staff — employees
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. field — for sport
  11. staff — employees
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. field — a subject
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. stem — to come from
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. mate — a friend
  19. staff — a stick
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. mate — to breed
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. field — farmland

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