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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. mate — a partner
  5. row — a line
  6. rule — a law
  7. roll — a cake
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. rule — government
  13. mate — a friend
  14. spell — letters
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. row — to paddle
  18. spell — magic
  19. roll — a list
  20. spell — a short time
  21. wake — a trail
  22. plane — a tool
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. wake — before a funeral

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