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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. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. race — a contest
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. last — final
  5. spell — a short time
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. spell — letters
  8. race — the arms race
  9. perch — the fish
  10. wax — to grow
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. last — finally
  16. pass — a permit
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. last — to go on
  19. spell — magic
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. race — humankind
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. game — wild animals
  24. game — a match

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