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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. cell — a phone
  3. mate — to breed
  4. drill — army training
  5. drill — the tool
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. wake — a trail
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. spell — magic
  10. dip — to sink
  11. mate — a friend
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. spell — a short time
  17. perch — the fish
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. mate — a partner
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. drill — a practice
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. cell — in biology

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