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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. mate — a friend
  3. mate — to breed
  4. game — a match
  5. wound — an injury
  6. march — music
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. field — for sport
  9. deal — to handle
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. wound — an injury
  12. object — to protest
  13. shower — rain
  14. object — an aim
  15. object — a thing
  16. mate — a partner
  17. field — farmland
  18. game — wild animals
  19. march — the month
  20. march — the month
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. field — a subject
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. shower — to wash

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