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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 120 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. pop — music
  3. pop — to visit
  4. lie — to recline
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. file — a line of people
  7. spring — of water
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. pop — soda
  11. last — to go on
  12. file — a tool
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. file — a document
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. spring — a coil
  17. last — finally
  18. present — there
  19. spring — the season
  20. last — final
  21. fine — all right
  22. fine — high quality
  23. present — a gift
  24. present — the time now

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