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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. season — in sport
  3. mate — a partner
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. perch — the fish
  6. bore — to tire
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. shower — to wash
  10. mate — to breed
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. bore — to drill
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. bat — the animal
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. mate — a friend
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. shower — rain

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