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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. season — in sport
  3. cell — a phone
  4. wound — an injury
  5. pop — to visit
  6. wound — an injury
  7. mate — to breed
  8. chest — a box
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. season — of the year
  11. pound — a weight
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. chest — of your body
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. cue — a hint
  17. mate — a partner
  18. mate — a friend
  19. pop — soda
  20. chest — of your body
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — in biology
  23. cue — for pool
  24. cue — a signal

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