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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. net — after costs
  4. squash — the sport
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. mate — a partner
  7. squash — to crush
  8. net — in sport
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. mate — a friend
  12. net — for catching
  13. prune — to trim
  14. pit — a hole
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. shower — to wash
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. pit — in a race
  21. shower — rain
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. mate — to breed
  24. prune — to trim

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