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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 116 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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. press — a publisher
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. bore — to drill
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. pass — a permit
  9. mate — a friend
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rest — a break
  12. fork — in a road
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — moving air
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bore — to tire
  17. track — to keep track
  18. track — a path
  19. track — a song
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. mate — to breed
  22. press — to push
  23. press — newspapers
  24. wind — to turn a key

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