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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  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. rush — to hurry
  3. tear — from crying
  4. charge — electricity
  5. squash — to crush
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. file — a document
  8. net — in sport
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. squash — the sport
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. file — a line of people
  13. sharp — clever
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. charge — a price
  17. tear — from crying
  18. net — after costs
  19. rush — hurry
  20. file — a tool
  21. net — for catching
  22. pass — a permit
  23. tear — to rip
  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