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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. game — wild animals
  3. tear — to rip
  4. swing — in golf
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. race — a contest
  8. kid — child
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. game — a match
  11. tear — from crying
  12. swing — music
  13. race — humankind
  14. tear — from crying
  15. swing — to play on
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. kid — to tease
  20. race — the arms race
  21. pass — a permit
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. snap — to click

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