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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. season — in sport
  4. bound — tied together
  5. bound — certain
  6. bound — obliged
  7. track — a path
  8. mate — a partner
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. shower — rain
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. track — to keep track
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. track — a song
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. sharp — clever
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. kick — in football
  22. shower — to wash
  23. season — of the year
  24. mate — a friend

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