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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. mate — a partner
  3. band — a ring
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. game — wild animals
  6. band — a music group
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. bore — to drill
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. present — a gift
  11. game — a match
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. court — of a king
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. present — the time now
  16. bore — to tire
  17. mate — to breed
  18. court — for sport
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. present — there
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. plane — a tool
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. court — of law

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