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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. court — of law
  3. court — for sport
  4. face — to confront
  5. mate — a friend
  6. pass — a permit
  7. mate — to breed
  8. pound — a weight
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. face — to point toward
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. mate — a partner
  14. court — of a king
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. vault — a safe
  17. face — part of the head
  18. pass — to spend time

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