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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — a short time
  4. game — wild animals
  5. spell — magic
  6. last — to go on
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. charge — a price
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. last — final
  13. season — in sport
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. charge — in control
  16. band — a ring
  17. last — finally
  18. shower — to wash
  19. season — of the year
  20. pass — a permit
  21. band — a music group
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. shower — rain
  24. charge — electricity

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