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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. cell — a phone
  4. net — after costs
  5. mate — to breed
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. wake — a trail
  8. sharp — clever
  9. net — in sport
  10. mug — a face
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. cue — for pool
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. mug — to rob
  15. mug — a cup
  16. cue — a signal
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. mate — a friend
  19. net — for catching
  20. lean — thin
  21. lean — to bend
  22. cell — in biology
  23. mate — a partner
  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