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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kid — child
  4. hand — in cards
  5. race — a contest
  6. root — of a plant
  7. pass — a permit
  8. face — to confront
  9. hand — help
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. bank — of a river
  12. root — of a word
  13. root — the cause
  14. face — to point toward
  15. bank — for money
  16. race — humankind
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. bank — for money
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. face — part of the head
  22. race — the arms race
  23. pitch — completely
  24. pitch — a sports field

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