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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  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. present — a gift
  2. hand — in cards
  3. spell — a short time
  4. squash — the sport
  5. net — for catching
  6. hand — help
  7. wound — an injury
  8. net — in sport
  9. net — after costs
  10. key — for a lock
  11. mate — a partner
  12. key — the most important part
  13. present — the time now
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. mate — to breed
  16. squash — to crush
  17. spell — letters
  18. spell — magic
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. wound — an injury
  21. present — there
  22. key — in music
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  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