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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 116 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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. mark — a trace
  3. rest — a break
  4. last — final
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. tube — the underground
  7. pass — a permit
  8. last — to go on
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. rest — what's left
  11. charge — in control
  12. last — finally
  13. clip — to cut
  14. mark — a grade
  15. clip — for paper
  16. tube — a container
  17. charge — a price
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. charge — electricity
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. clip — a video
  24. rest — what's left

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