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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. net — in sport
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. net — for catching
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. land — ground
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. rest — what's left
  9. pass — a permit
  10. face — to confront
  11. land — a country
  12. face — part of the head
  13. face — to point toward
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. net — after costs
  17. rest — what's left
  18. land — to come down

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