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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. cue — a signal
  3. row — to paddle
  4. cue — a hint
  5. mine — for digging
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. capital — a city
  8. staff — a stick
  9. staff — employees
  10. capital — money
  11. staff — employees
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. cue — for pool
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. pass — a permit
  20. row — a line
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. sharp — clever
  23. pound — a weight
  24. mine — an explosive

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