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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. date — the fruit
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. ground — a position
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. degree — an amount
  8. perch — the fish
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. pass — a permit
  12. pitch — completely
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. ground — crushed
  15. degree — temperature
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. wake — a trail
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. degree — from a university
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. ground — the earth

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