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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. mate — a friend
  3. snap — to click
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. season — of the year
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. sharp — clever
  8. cell — in biology
  9. mate — a partner
  10. spell — letters
  11. vault — a safe
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. chip — to eat
  14. cell — a phone
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. season — in sport
  20. chip — for betting
  21. spell — a short time
  22. spell — magic
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. sharp — exactly

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