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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 120 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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. game — a match
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. game — wild animals
  9. wound — an injury
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. bat — the animal
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. cap — a hat
  17. cap — a lid
  18. wound — an injury
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. cap — of ice
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. pass — a permit

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