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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 116 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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. key — in music
  3. rule — a law
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. row — to paddle
  6. rule — government
  7. face — to confront
  8. bass — the fish
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. row — a line
  11. mate — a friend
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. sharp — clever
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. key — for a lock
  16. mate — a partner
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. bass — low music
  20. key — the most important part
  21. face — part of the head
  22. face — to point toward
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. patient — a sick person

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