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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. mate — a partner
  3. foot — a measure
  4. mate — a friend
  5. last — finally
  6. rush — hurry
  7. pound — a weight
  8. last — to go on
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. last — final
  13. field — for sport
  14. net — after costs
  15. field — farmland
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. net — for catching
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. stem — to come from
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. field — a subject
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. net — in sport
  24. stem — a stem cell

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