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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. file — a tool
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. date — the fruit
  10. file — a document
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. pop — to visit
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. file — a line of people
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. pass — a permit
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wound — an injury
  23. pop — soda
  24. pop — music

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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