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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. bat — the animal
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. tear — to rip
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. pass — a permit
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. bound — certain
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. scale — size or range
  13. snap — to click
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. bound — obliged
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. scale — in music
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. tear — from crying
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. bound — tied together
  23. tear — from crying
  24. mark — a grade

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