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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. court — of a king
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. pass — a permit
  6. firm — decided
  7. hand — help
  8. spell — a short time
  9. snap — to click
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. spell — letters
  12. firm — steady
  13. firm — a company
  14. clip — to cut
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. clip — a video
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. hand — in cards
  20. court — of law
  21. spell — magic
  22. clip — for paper
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. court — for sport

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