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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. mate — a friend
  4. face — part of the head
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. wind — moving air
  7. face — to point toward
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. pop — soda
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. pop — to visit
  13. mate — to breed
  14. wind — moving air
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. bore — to drill
  20. pop — music
  21. stem — to come from
  22. face — to confront
  23. bore — to tire
  24. calf — a young animal

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