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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. last — to go on
  4. bear — the animal
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. land — a country
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. shower — to wash
  9. swing — in golf
  10. land — ground
  11. spell — letters
  12. last — final
  13. swing — music
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. land — to come down
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. last — finally
  18. shower — rain
  19. spell — magic
  20. bear — the animal
  21. pass — a permit
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. swing — to play on
  24. spell — a short time

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