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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 120 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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. lean — to bend
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. sharp — clever
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. clip — a video
  10. rash — a series
  11. saw — the tool
  12. lean — thin
  13. clip — for paper
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. saw — the tool
  16. clip — to cut
  17. mate — to breed
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. rash — hasty
  22. mate — a friend
  23. pit — a hole
  24. pit — in a race

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