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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 116 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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. swing — to play on
  4. rash — hasty
  5. object — to protest
  6. mate — a friend
  7. object — an aim
  8. pound — a weight
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. tube — a container
  12. object — a thing
  13. swing — in golf
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. swing — music
  17. tube — the underground
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. rash — a series
  21. mate — a partner
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. bat — the animal

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