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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. bore — to tire
  3. mate — a friend
  4. firm — steady
  5. mark — a grade
  6. ground — a position
  7. mate — to breed
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. bore — to drill
  11. shower — to wash
  12. firm — decided
  13. mark — a trace
  14. spell — a short time
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. ground — the earth
  17. ground — crushed
  18. spell — magic
  19. shower — rain
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. firm — a company
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. spell — letters

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