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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. mate — to breed
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. fine — all right
  5. cell — in biology
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. race — a contest
  8. race — the arms race
  9. fine — high quality
  10. race — humankind
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. cell — a phone
  13. season — of the year
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. shower — to wash
  17. shower — rain
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. season — in sport
  23. mate — a friend
  24. hide — to keep secret

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