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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. field — farmland
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. pass — a permit
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. current — happening now
  7. current — of water
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. drill — a practice
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. club — for dancing
  13. club — a group
  14. bass — low music
  15. field — a subject
  16. bass — the fish
  17. field — for sport
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. club — for golf
  22. drill — the tool
  23. current — electric
  24. drill — army training

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