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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. mate — a friend
  3. kid — to tease
  4. suit — to fit
  5. game — wild animals
  6. bound — obliged
  7. mate — to breed
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. lean — thin
  10. suit — in cards
  11. lean — to bend
  12. pit — a hole
  13. kid — child
  14. cold — not warm
  15. suit — clothes
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. game — a match
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bound — certain
  20. pit — in a race
  21. cold — an illness
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. game — a kind of play

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