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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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. leaves — of a tree
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. cap — of ice
  7. land — a country
  8. sharp — clever
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. cap — a hat
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. land — ground
  13. land — to come down
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. field — for sport
  17. branch — a division
  18. field — a subject
  19. cap — a lid
  20. field — farmland
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. mate — a friend
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. branch — of a tree

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