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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. He has no idea where the ________________ is.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. branch — a division
  3. season — in sport
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. mate — to breed
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. file — a tool
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. file — a line of people
  17. file — a document
  18. mate — a partner
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. pit — in a race
  21. pit — a hole
  22. season — of the year
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. safe — a strongbox

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