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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: season · tear · mate · racket · wake · cell

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. tear — from crying
  3. cell — a phone
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. season — in sport
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. mate — a partner
  10. season — of the year
  11. cell — in biology
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. tear — from crying
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. mate — a friend
  17. tear — to rip
  18. wake — a trail

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