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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. face — to point toward
  3. last — to go on
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. face — part of the head
  7. wax — to grow
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. mate — a friend
  10. bear — the animal
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. bat — the animal
  13. face — to confront
  14. bear — the animal
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. last — finally
  17. bore — to drill
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bore — to tire
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. mate — to breed
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. last — final

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