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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. tube — the underground
  3. mate — a partner
  4. mate — to breed
  5. mark — a grade
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — what's left
  8. mark — a trace
  9. row — a line
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. row — to paddle
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. pitch — completely
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. mate — a friend
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. season — of the year
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. rest — a break
  22. season — in sport
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. tube — a container

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