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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. wound — an injury
  5. drill — the tool
  6. ground — crushed
  7. ground — a position
  8. drill — army training
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. mine — for digging
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. pass — a permit
  15. drill — a practice
  16. wax — to grow
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. ground — the earth
  20. rock — music
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. rock — a stone
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. rock — to move gently

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