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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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. hand — help
  4. march — the month
  5. rest — what's left
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. bear — the animal
  11. hand — in cards
  12. mate — to breed
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. bear — the animal
  16. land — ground
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. rest — a break
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. rest — what's left
  21. march — the month
  22. march — music
  23. land — to come down
  24. land — a country

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