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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. clip — to cut
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. hand — in cards
  6. cue — a hint
  7. hand — help
  8. rash — a series
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. suit — to fit
  11. rash — hasty
  12. cue — a signal
  13. suit — clothes
  14. clip — for paper
  15. last — final
  16. last — finally
  17. suit — in cards
  18. mate — to breed
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. last — to go on
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. mate — a friend
  23. clip — a video
  24. cue — for pool

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