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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. lie — to recline
  3. spring — the season
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. object — to protest
  6. toast — bread
  7. mate — a friend
  8. object — an aim
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. mate — to breed
  11. squash — the sport
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. spring — a coil
  14. spring — of water
  15. chest — a box
  16. mate — a partner
  17. object — a thing
  18. chest — of your body
  19. squash — to crush
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. chest — of your body
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. coach — a trainer

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