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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 116 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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to spend time
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. rash — hasty
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. cap — a lid
  6. bass — the fish
  7. court — of a king
  8. chair — a leader
  9. net — for catching
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. cap — of ice
  13. cap — a hat
  14. net — after costs
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. pass — a permit
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. court — of law
  19. bass — low music
  20. court — for sport
  21. rash — a series
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. net — in sport
  24. straw — dry grass

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