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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. tear — from crying
  3. snap — to click
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. pass — a permit
  8. plane — a tool
  9. tear — from crying
  10. mate — to breed
  11. mate — a friend
  12. dip — to sink
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. mate — a partner
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. tear — to rip

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