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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. cell — a phone
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. degree — an amount
  6. degree — from a university
  7. degree — temperature
  8. mate — a friend
  9. mate — to breed
  10. shower — to wash
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. rule — a law
  13. shower — rain
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. pound — a weight
  23. rule — government
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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