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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. mate — a partner
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. spell — a short time
  5. spell — letters
  6. season — of the year
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. mate — a friend
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. mate — to breed
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. spell — magic
  15. bore — to drill
  16. roll — a list
  17. season — in sport
  18. roll — a cake
  19. shower — to wash
  20. rock — music
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. shower — rain
  23. bore — to tire
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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