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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. rush — hurry
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. spell — letters
  7. fine — all right
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. perch — the fish
  10. fine — high quality
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. rash — hasty
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. rash — a series
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. spell — a short time
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. bore — to tire
  20. mate — to breed
  21. mate — a friend
  22. spell — magic
  23. mine — for digging
  24. bore — to drill

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