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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. mug — a face
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. bass — low music
  5. cold — an illness
  6. bass — the fish
  7. sharp — clever
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. mug — a cup
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. current — of water
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. current — happening now
  21. cold — not warm
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. pass — a permit
  24. current — electric

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