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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. stand — to bear
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. last — final
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. spell — magic
  7. spell — a short time
  8. spell — letters
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pass — a permit
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. court — for sport
  15. last — to go on
  16. bark — to shout
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. cell — a phone
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. last — finally
  22. court — of a king
  23. court — of law
  24. cell — in biology

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