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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. file — a document
  3. mate — to breed
  4. fine — all right
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. mate — a friend
  7. cell — a phone
  8. game — a match
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. fine — high quality
  12. shower — rain
  13. board — a committee
  14. board — to get on
  15. file — a line of people
  16. present — the time now
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. mate — a partner
  20. present — there
  21. file — a tool
  22. present — a gift
  23. game — wild animals
  24. shower — to wash

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