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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. bear — the animal
  3. mate — a partner
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. shower — to wash
  8. perch — the fish
  9. wound — an injury
  10. pit — a hole
  11. bear — the animal
  12. root — of a plant
  13. track — a path
  14. root — the cause
  15. pit — in a race
  16. track — to keep track
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. shower — rain
  22. mate — a friend
  23. track — a song
  24. root — of a word

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