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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. dip — to sink
  5. mate — a partner
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. bark — to shout
  9. current — of water
  10. season — in sport
  11. wind — moving air
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. current — electric
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. season — of the year
  18. current — happening now
  19. wind — moving air
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. rash — a series
  23. rash — hasty
  24. mate — a friend

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