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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. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to spend time
  2. face — to point toward
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. rash — hasty
  6. march — the month
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. chair — a leader
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. march — music
  15. rash — a series
  16. club — for golf
  17. march — the month
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. club — a group
  20. face — to confront
  21. face — part of the head
  22. pass — a permit
  23. club — for dancing
  24. nail — for a hammer

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