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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. cue — for pool
  3. pass — a permit
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. clip — for paper
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. field — a subject
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. clip — to cut
  16. field — farmland
  17. wind — moving air
  18. cue — a hint
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. clip — a video
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. cue — a signal
  24. field — for sport

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