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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. mate — a partner
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. fall — to drop
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. branch — a division
  7. degree — from a university
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. season — of the year
  10. degree — an amount
  11. degree — temperature
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. fall — to drop
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. mate — to breed
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. season — in sport
  22. mate — a friend
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. fall — the season

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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