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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 120 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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. mate — a partner
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. land — to come down
  5. fine — high quality
  6. row — to paddle
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. saw — the tool
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. row — a line
  12. land — a country
  13. stem — to come from
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. mate — a friend
  16. fine — all right
  17. degree — temperature
  18. land — ground
  19. degree — from a university
  20. mate — to breed
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. degree — an amount
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. saw — the tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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