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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. season — in sport
  3. file — a line of people
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. mate — a partner
  6. file — a document
  7. mate — a friend
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. season — of the year
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. clip — for paper
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — farmland
  16. clip — to cut
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. clip — a video
  19. field — for sport
  20. vault — a safe
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. file — a tool
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. safe — out of danger

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