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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. tube — a container
  3. march — music
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. march — the month
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. chair — a leader
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. cold — an illness
  14. tube — the underground
  15. pass — a permit
  16. rock — a stone
  17. rock — music
  18. cold — not warm
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. march — the month
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. chair — a professorship

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