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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. hand — help
  3. last — final
  4. last — to go on
  5. key — for a lock
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. kid — to tease
  8. mate — a partner
  9. key — in music
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. key — the most important part
  12. mate — to breed
  13. bulb — for light
  14. hand — in cards
  15. pass — a permit
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. bulb — for light
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. kid — child
  22. last — finally
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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