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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. net — in sport
  4. pass — a permit
  5. spell — magic
  6. spell — letters
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. spell — a short time
  9. mate — a partner
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. field — a subject
  12. mate — a friend
  13. net — for catching
  14. date — the fruit
  15. club — for golf
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. club — a group
  18. net — after costs
  19. club — for dancing
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. field — farmland
  22. field — for sport
  23. mate — to breed
  24. shower — to wash

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