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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. rest — a break
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. pitch — completely
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. content — happy
  9. rest — what's left
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. shower — to wash
  12. march — the month
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. content — the amount
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. degree — an amount
  17. pass — a permit
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. degree — temperature
  20. degree — from a university
  21. march — music
  22. shower — rain
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. march — the month

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