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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. ball — a dance
  3. shower — rain
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. ball — a great time
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. chest — a box
  9. mate — to breed
  10. spell — a short time
  11. shower — to wash
  12. spell — magic
  13. mug — a cup
  14. spell — letters
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. mug — a face
  18. chest — of your body
  19. mate — a partner
  20. mate — a friend
  21. row — to paddle
  22. row — a line
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. chest — of your body

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