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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. spring — a coil
  3. cue — for pool
  4. mate — a friend
  5. cue — a signal
  6. mate — a partner
  7. cell — a phone
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. march — the month
  11. file — a document
  12. rule — a law
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. file — a line of people
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. spring — of water
  17. rule — government
  18. march — the month
  19. file — a tool
  20. cell — in biology
  21. cue — a hint
  22. march — music
  23. mate — to breed
  24. perch — the fish

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