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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. lean — to bend
  4. last — final
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. drill — army training
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. degree — from a university
  9. lean — thin
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. drill — a practice
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. last — to go on
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. last — finally
  18. sharp — clever
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. degree — an amount
  21. drill — the tool
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. degree — temperature
  24. pass — a permit

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