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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. rest — what's left
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. wind — moving air
  5. game — wild animals
  6. last — to go on
  7. mate — a friend
  8. march — music
  9. last — final
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. march — the month
  13. march — the month
  14. squash — the sport
  15. squash — to crush
  16. last — finally
  17. game — a match
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. rest — what's left
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. mate — a partner
  24. rest — a break

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