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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. mate — a partner
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. lean — thin
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. spell — letters
  9. spell — magic
  10. mate — to breed
  11. lean — to bend
  12. spell — a short time
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. mate — a friend
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. clip — for paper
  18. clip — a video
  19. band — a ring
  20. band — a music group
  21. foot — a measure
  22. clip — to cut
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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