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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. pass — a permit
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. mate — a partner
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. rush — hurry
  7. cap — of ice
  8. sharp — clever
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. field — a subject
  11. kid — child
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. kid — to tease
  15. field — for sport
  16. cap — a hat
  17. field — farmland
  18. cap — a lid
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. pound — a weight
  21. mate — a friend
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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