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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 116 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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. tube — the underground
  3. shower — to wash
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. shower — rain
  6. capital — money
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. kick — in football
  9. mate — a friend
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. wound — an injury
  14. tube — a container
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. capital — a city
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. wound — an injury
  23. mate — to breed
  24. kick — with a leg

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