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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. content — happy
  5. field — a subject
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. pass — a permit
  8. race — humankind
  9. race — the arms race
  10. staff — a stick
  11. race — a contest
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. field — farmland
  14. field — for sport
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. fall — to drop
  17. content — the amount
  18. fall — to drop
  19. fall — the season
  20. staff — employees
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. staff — employees

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