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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. mate — to breed
  3. shower — rain
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. rest — a break
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. mate — a partner
  9. last — final
  10. mate — a friend
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. last — finally
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. bound — certain
  18. bound — obliged
  19. last — to go on
  20. rest — what's left
  21. wax — to grow
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. bound — tied together
  24. rest — what's left

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