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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 116 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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. fine — all right
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rest — what's left
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. spell — letters
  9. spell — magic
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. lean — to bend
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. rest — a break
  15. court — for sport
  16. bat — the animal
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. court — of law
  19. lean — thin
  20. spell — a short time
  21. fine — high quality
  22. pass — a permit
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. court — of a king

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