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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. race — a contest
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. capital — a city
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. foot — a measure
  12. capital — money
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. track — a path
  15. race — the arms race
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. track — to keep track
  18. race — humankind
  19. track — a song
  20. mine — for digging
  21. stem — to come from
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. bowl — to roll

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