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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 120 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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. staff — a stick
  3. staff — employees
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. pound — a weight
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. hand — in cards
  9. mate — to breed
  10. ball — a dance
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. last — finally
  15. hand — help
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. ball — a great time
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. last — final
  20. last — to go on
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. mate — a friend
  24. staff — employees

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