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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 116 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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. land — a country
  3. rest — what's left
  4. land — to come down
  5. land — ground
  6. press — to push
  7. present — the time now
  8. mate — to breed
  9. present — there
  10. rest — a break
  11. drill — a practice
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. drill — the tool
  14. rest — what's left
  15. bear — the animal
  16. mate — a friend
  17. press — newspapers
  18. drill — army training
  19. press — a publisher
  20. face — to confront
  21. bear — the animal
  22. present — a gift
  23. face — to point toward
  24. face — part of the head

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