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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. march — music
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. fall — the season
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. row — to paddle
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. pass — a permit
  9. cold — not warm
  10. rash — hasty
  11. fall — to drop
  12. march — the month
  13. march — the month
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. cold — an illness
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. rash — a series
  19. fall — to drop
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. row — a line
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. dip — to sink

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