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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. rule — a law
  5. saw — the tool
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. mine — for digging
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. roll — a list
  12. wake — a trail
  13. saw — the tool
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. mate — a partner
  17. chair — a leader
  18. mate — to breed
  19. rule — government
  20. mate — a friend
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. roll — a cake

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