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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. rush — hurry
  3. spell — a short time
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. bank — of a river
  7. game — wild animals
  8. spell — magic
  9. spell — letters
  10. bat — the animal
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. bank — for money
  17. pass — a permit
  18. last — finally
  19. game — a match
  20. last — to go on
  21. last — final
  22. bank — for money
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. bat — for baseball

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