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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. spring — a coil
  5. wax — to grow
  6. spring — the season
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. spring — of water
  9. mate — a partner
  10. staff — a stick
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. prune — to trim
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. prune — to trim
  20. staff — employees
  21. staff — employees
  22. mate — to breed
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. prune — the fruit

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