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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. spell — magic
  3. chest — of your body
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. spell — letters
  7. rule — government
  8. spell — a short time
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. rule — a law
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. swing — in golf
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. mate — a friend
  16. swing — music
  17. mate — a partner
  18. rush — hurry
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. chest — of your body
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. chest — a box
  24. swing — to play on

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