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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. file — a tool
  4. bore — to tire
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. swing — in golf
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. file — a line of people
  10. pass — a permit
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. file — a document
  14. snap — to click
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. swing — music
  18. fall — to drop
  19. roll — a cake
  20. swing — to play on
  21. roll — a list
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. fall — to drop
  24. bore — to drill

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