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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. mate — a partner
  4. present — there
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. rash — a series
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. present — the time now
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. net — after costs
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. net — for catching
  16. cold — not warm
  17. net — in sport
  18. mate — to breed
  19. mate — a friend
  20. rash — hasty
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. fork — in a road
  23. cold — an illness
  24. fork — to eat with

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