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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. wound — an injury
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. dip — to sink
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. shower — rain
  9. shower — to wash
  10. bat — the animal
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. march — music
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. march — the month
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. pass — a permit
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. wound — an injury
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. march — the month

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