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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. mate — a friend
  3. net — after costs
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. bore — to tire
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. branch — a division
  9. pass — a permit
  10. drill — the tool
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. rule — a law
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. drill — army training
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. rule — government
  17. vault — a safe
  18. net — for catching
  19. drill — a practice
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. mate — to breed
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. bore — to drill
  24. net — in sport

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