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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. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. bank — for money
  3. mate — to breed
  4. cell — a phone
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. charge — a price
  7. prune — to trim
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. bank — for money
  11. cell — in biology
  12. present — a gift
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. scale — in music
  15. present — there
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. prune — to trim
  18. charge — electricity
  19. scale — size or range
  20. mate — a friend
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. bank — of a river
  23. charge — in control
  24. present — the time now

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