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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. pit — in a race
  4. branch — a division
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. mate — a friend
  10. hand — in cards
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. mate — a partner
  15. pit — a hole
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. sharp — clever
  18. last — finally
  19. rush — hurry
  20. hand — help
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. last — to go on
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. last — final

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