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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. mate — a friend
  3. mate — a partner
  4. cell — a phone
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. prune — to trim
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. fine — high quality
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. cell — in biology
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bat — the animal
  15. lie — to recline
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. mate — to breed
  19. prune — to trim
  20. fine — all right
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. plane — a tool
  24. lie — an untruth

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