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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. land — ground
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bass — low music
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. game — a match
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. mate — a friend
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. pit — a hole
  16. mate — to breed
  17. pit — in a race
  18. bass — the fish
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. game — wild animals
  21. stem — to come from
  22. land — to come down
  23. land — a country
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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