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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. spell — a short time
  3. row — a line
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. spell — letters
  6. fall — the season
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. row — to paddle
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. plane — a tool
  11. spell — magic
  12. stem — to come from
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — to drop
  17. deal — to handle
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. mate — a friend
  20. mate — a partner
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. pitcher — a jug

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