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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. mate — a friend
  3. ground — crushed
  4. snap — to click
  5. lean — thin
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. mate — to breed
  8. ground — a position
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. shower — to wash
  12. plane — a tool
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. chair — a leader
  15. lean — to bend
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. ground — the earth
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. shower — rain
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. lean — to rest against

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