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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. spring — of water
  4. cue — a hint
  5. firm — a company
  6. race — humankind
  7. mate — a partner
  8. cue — for pool
  9. mate — to breed
  10. spring — the season
  11. hand — in cards
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. branch — a division
  14. cue — a signal
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. hand — help
  17. spring — a coil
  18. race — the arms race
  19. firm — steady
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. firm — decided
  24. race — a contest

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