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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. bound — certain
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. mine — for digging
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. wound — an injury
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. date — the fruit
  12. pass — a permit
  13. season — of the year
  14. season — in sport
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. wake — a trail
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bound — obliged
  23. wound — an injury
  24. sharp — clever

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