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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. squash — to crush
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. rush — hurry
  7. mate — a friend
  8. mark — a grade
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. key — the most important part
  11. squash — the sport
  12. dip — to sink
  13. key — in music
  14. season — of the year
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. key — for a lock
  19. mate — to breed
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. season — in sport
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. mark — a trace

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