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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. mate — a partner
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. rest — a break
  5. row — to paddle
  6. last — to go on
  7. row — a line
  8. game — wild animals
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. mate — a friend
  11. last — final
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. plane — a tool
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. game — a match
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. deal — to handle
  19. rest — what's left
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. rest — what's left
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. last — finally

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