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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  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. cell — in a prison
  2. drill — the tool
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. prune — to trim
  5. prune — to trim
  6. mate — a partner
  7. rest — what's left
  8. drill — a practice
  9. season — in sport
  10. mate — to breed
  11. rest — what's left
  12. kick — in football
  13. rest — a break
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. mate — a friend
  16. cell — a phone
  17. pound — a weight
  18. cell — in biology
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. season — of the year
  22. drill — army training
  23. pound — to hit hard
  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