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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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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. charge — electricity
  3. bulb — for light
  4. chest — a box
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. chest — of your body
  8. ball — a dance
  9. degree — temperature
  10. charge — a price
  11. chest — of your body
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. degree — an amount
  14. ball — a great time
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. bulb — for light
  20. pass — a permit
  21. stem — to come from
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. degree — from a university
  24. charge — in control

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