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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. tear — from crying
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. ground — crushed
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. kid — child
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. drill — army training
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. chip — to eat
  12. tear — to rip
  13. drill — the tool
  14. kid — to tease
  15. pass — a permit
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. stock — shares
  18. chip — for betting
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. ground — a position
  21. stock — goods
  22. drill — a practice
  23. ground — the earth
  24. tear — from crying

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