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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. cap — a lid
  3. cap — of ice
  4. shower — to wash
  5. mark — a trace
  6. shower — rain
  7. mate — to breed
  8. mate — a friend
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. pound — a weight
  18. wound — an injury
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. mark — a grade
  21. cap — a hat
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wound — an injury
  24. pound — to hit hard

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