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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. wound — an injury
  3. cap — a hat
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. fall — to drop
  7. bat — the animal
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. cap — a lid
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. pass — a permit
  12. fall — the season
  13. object — a thing
  14. object — to protest
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. object — an aim
  17. fall — to drop
  18. cap — of ice
  19. court — of law
  20. court — of a king
  21. squash — to crush
  22. squash — the sport
  23. wound — an injury
  24. pass — to spend 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