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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. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. spell — magic
  4. content — happy
  5. mate — a partner
  6. spell — letters
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. mate — a friend
  10. race — a contest
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. race — humankind
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. spell — a short time
  17. mate — to breed
  18. content — the amount
  19. pass — a permit
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. date — the fruit
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. race — the arms race

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