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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. sharp — clever
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. spell — a short time
  5. mate — a partner
  6. chest — a box
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. chest — of your body
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. mark — a trace
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. land — a country
  13. mate — to breed
  14. pound — a weight
  15. pitch — completely
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. spell — magic
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. mark — a grade
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — ground
  23. chest — of your body
  24. spell — letters

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