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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. rock — a stone
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. mate — a partner
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. mate — to breed
  9. ground — crushed
  10. scale — size or range
  11. scale — in music
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. content — the amount
  14. ground — a position
  15. wake — a trail
  16. content — happy
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. rock — music
  22. snap — to click
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. ground — the earth

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