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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 124 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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. chip — for betting
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. mate — a friend
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. cold — an illness
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. root — the cause
  10. mate — to breed
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. club — for dancing
  13. tube — the underground
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. club — a group
  16. club — for golf
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. tube — a container
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. date — the fruit
  21. root — of a word
  22. chip — to eat
  23. cold — not warm
  24. root — of a plant

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