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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. mate — to breed
  5. chair — a leader
  6. plane — a tool
  7. spring — a coil
  8. mate — a partner
  9. spring — the season
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. fine — all right
  13. fine — high quality
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. swing — music
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. swing — in golf
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. swing — to play on
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. spring — of water

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