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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. club — a group
  4. club — for golf
  5. tube — a container
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. tube — the underground
  8. staff — a stick
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. staff — employees
  11. sharp — clever
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. club — for dancing
  16. stem — to come from
  17. staff — employees
  18. vault — a safe
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. mate — to breed
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. mate — a partner

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