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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. rest — what's left
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. plane — a tool
  6. spring — of water
  7. squash — the sport
  8. rest — a break
  9. scale — size or range
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. mate — a friend
  15. spring — a coil
  16. scale — in music
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. content — happy
  19. mate — to breed
  20. squash — to crush
  21. content — the amount
  22. branch — a division
  23. spring — the season
  24. rest — what's left

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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