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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. march — the month
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. bat — the animal
  9. march — the month
  10. mate — to breed
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. mate — a friend
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. stem — to come from
  16. chest — of your body
  17. march — music
  18. chest — a box
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. chest — of your body
  21. mate — a partner
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. hide — to keep secret

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