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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. squash — to crush
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. shower — rain
  5. capital — money
  6. prune — to trim
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. capital — a city
  9. squash — the sport
  10. mate — a friend
  11. prune — to trim
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. shower — to wash
  15. sharp — clever
  16. content — happy
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. mate — to breed
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. content — the amount
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. shower — a meteor shower

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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