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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. saw — the tool
  3. mate — a partner
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. saw — the tool
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. vault — a safe
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. track — a song
  10. row — to paddle
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. last — final
  13. chest — of your body
  14. track — a path
  15. track — to keep track
  16. last — finally
  17. row — a line
  18. mate — a friend
  19. mate — to breed
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. chest — a box
  22. last — to go on
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. chest — of your body

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