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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. game — wild animals
  3. staff — employees
  4. ground — the earth
  5. wind — moving air
  6. game — a match
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. ground — a position
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. wound — an injury
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. staff — a stick
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. staff — employees
  18. pass — a permit
  19. ground — crushed
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. wound — an injury
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. wind — moving air
  24. game — a kind of play

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