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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. date — the fruit
  5. pass — a permit
  6. mug — a face
  7. mug — a cup
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. game — a match
  10. court — of law
  11. court — of a king
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. file — a tool
  16. fork — in a road
  17. court — for sport
  18. file — a line of people
  19. mug — to rob
  20. game — wild animals
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. file — a document

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