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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. charge — electricity
  3. rush — hurry
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. charge — in control
  6. spring — of water
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. shower — to wash
  9. prune — to trim
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. roll — a list
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. prune — to trim
  14. shower — rain
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. mate — a partner
  17. mate — a friend
  18. mate — to breed
  19. roll — a cake
  20. charge — a price
  21. spring — the season
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. spring — a coil
  24. arm — part of the body

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