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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. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. mate — to breed
  3. ball — a dance
  4. fall — to drop
  5. tube — a container
  6. toast — the most admired
  7. mate — a partner
  8. fall — the season
  9. toast — bread
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. wound — an injury
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. mate — a friend
  14. perch — the fish
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. tube — the underground
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. ball — a great time
  21. fall — to drop
  22. wound — an injury
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. perch — for a bird

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