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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 120 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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468
Word bank
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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tear — from crying
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. tear — to rip
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. rush — hurry
  14. capital — a city
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. capital — money
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. degree — an amount
  19. degree — temperature
  20. degree — from a university
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. rush — a thrill

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