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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. last — finally
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. mate — a friend
  5. charge — electricity
  6. last — final
  7. band — a music group
  8. kid — to tease
  9. bound — tied together
  10. mate — to breed
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. charge — a price
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. charge — in control
  16. band — a ring
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. bound — certain
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. last — to go on
  22. kid — child
  23. bound — obliged
  24. dip — to sink

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