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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 124 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. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to spend time
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. plane — a tool
  4. cold — an illness
  5. pass — a permit
  6. court — of a king
  7. court — for sport
  8. court — of law
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. march — the month
  11. shower — to wash
  12. bat — the animal
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. march — the month
  16. cold — not warm
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. shower — rain
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. kick — in football
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. march — music

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