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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. band — a ring
  4. band — a music group
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. perch — the fish
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. wake — a trail
  10. game — a match
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. spell — magic
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. spell — letters
  23. spell — a short time
  24. game — wild animals

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