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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. land — a country
  3. track — a song
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. craft — boats
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. roll — a cake
  8. clip — for paper
  9. clip — a video
  10. pass — a permit
  11. land — ground
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. roll — a list
  14. track — to keep track
  15. track — a path
  16. land — to come down
  17. bass — low music
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. craft — a skill
  20. bass — the fish
  21. clip — to cut
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. craft — a handicraft

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