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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. saw — the tool
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. mate — a partner
  8. chair — a leader
  9. mate — to breed
  10. saw — the tool
  11. clip — a video
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. clip — to cut
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. clip — for paper
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. mate — a friend
  22. lie — to recline
  23. bore — to tire
  24. bore — to drill

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