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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. fine — high quality
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. object — to protest
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. craft — boats
  10. object — an aim
  11. cold — an illness
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. pass — a permit
  16. cold — not warm
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. object — a thing
  19. rush — hurry
  20. craft — a skill
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. fine — all right
  24. cold — the Cold War

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