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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. land — a country
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. land — ground
  5. land — to come down
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. pit — a hole
  10. capital — money
  11. spring — the season
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. spring — a coil
  14. plane — a tool
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. spring — of water
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. pit — in a race
  20. chair — a leader
  21. pass — a permit
  22. capital — a city
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. chair — to sit on

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