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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. shower — to wash
  3. staff — a stick
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. can — to be able to
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. staff — employees
  9. shower — rain
  10. bound — tied together
  11. can — a tin
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. tube — the underground
  14. pass — a permit
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. capital — a city
  19. staff — employees
  20. bound — obliged
  21. can — a tin
  22. bound — certain
  23. tube — a container
  24. capital — money

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