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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. pass — a permit
  4. clip — to cut
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. scale — size or range
  7. pit — a hole
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. clip — a video
  11. cold — not warm
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. cold — an illness
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. court — of law
  16. court — for sport
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. clip — for paper
  20. court — of a king
  21. stem — to come from
  22. pit — in a race
  23. scale — in music
  24. stem — a stem cell

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