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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. mug — to rob
  3. fine — all right
  4. cell — a phone
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. mate — a friend
  7. cell — in biology
  8. cold — an illness
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. fine — high quality
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. mate — a partner
  14. mug — a face
  15. pitch — completely
  16. cold — not warm
  17. game — wild animals
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. mate — to breed
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. mug — a cup

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