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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. shower — to wash
  3. court — of law
  4. mate — a friend
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. wind — moving air
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. mate — to breed
  13. shower — rain
  14. wind — moving air
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. court — of a king
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. date — the fruit
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. mate — a partner
  23. court — for sport
  24. coach — a trainer

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