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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. root — of a word
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. mate — to breed
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. content — happy
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. fine — all right
  11. content — the amount
  12. mate — a friend
  13. bat — the animal
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. squash — the sport
  17. squash — to crush
  18. root — of a plant
  19. root — the cause
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. fine — high quality
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. content — videos and posts

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