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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. spell — letters
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. rush — hurry
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. pop — music
  7. cell — in biology
  8. present — a gift
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. pop — soda
  13. spell — a short time
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. spell — magic
  16. season — in sport
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. rock — a stone
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. cell — a phone
  21. rock — music
  22. present — there
  23. season — of the year
  24. present — the time now

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