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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. club — a group
  3. mate — a partner
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. row — to paddle
  8. cold — an illness
  9. club — for dancing
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. foot — a measure
  14. present — the time now
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. row — a line
  19. present — there
  20. club — for golf
  21. mate — to breed
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. present — a gift
  24. pound — a weight

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