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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. roll — a list
  5. roll — a cake
  6. face — part of the head
  7. sharp — clever
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. staff — employees
  11. staff — employees
  12. mate — to breed
  13. face — to confront
  14. rash — a series
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. staff — a stick
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. mate — a friend
  21. face — to point toward
  22. bat — the animal
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. rash — hasty

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