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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. saw — the tool
  3. firm — a company
  4. mate — a partner
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. mate — to breed
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. spring — a coil
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. march — the month
  13. march — music
  14. spring — the season
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. spring — of water
  17. wake — a trail
  18. firm — decided
  19. march — the month
  20. squash — to crush
  21. mate — a friend
  22. saw — the tool
  23. squash — the sport
  24. firm — steady

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