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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. can — to be able to
  3. mug — a face
  4. last — to go on
  5. wound — an injury
  6. object — to protest
  7. wind — moving air
  8. mug — a cup
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. pass — a permit
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. wind — moving air
  13. object — a thing
  14. last — finally
  15. can — a tin
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ground — a position
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. object — an aim
  21. mug — to rob
  22. wound — an injury
  23. ground — the earth
  24. last — final

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