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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  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. bat — for baseball
  2. mate — a friend
  3. roll — a cake
  4. cold — not warm
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. roll — a list
  7. key — for a lock
  8. key — the most important part
  9. key — in music
  10. present — the time now
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. mate — a partner
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. pound — a weight
  15. present — there
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. mate — to breed
  19. present — a gift
  20. bat — the animal
  21. cold — an illness
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. pound — for dogs
  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