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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. present — the time now
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. lean — thin
  5. game — a match
  6. pass — a permit
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. lean — to bend
  11. game — wild animals
  12. present — there
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. bat — the animal
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. mine — for digging
  18. bass — low music
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. present — a gift
  24. bass — the fish

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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