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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. track — a path
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. land — a country
  8. tube — the underground
  9. snap — to click
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. track — a song
  12. bark — to shout
  13. rush — hurry
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. land — to come down
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. land — ground
  19. mate — a partner
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. track — to keep track
  22. mate — to breed
  23. tube — a container
  24. bay — a horse colour

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