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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. file — a document
  3. tear — from crying
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. court — of a king
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. roll — a list
  8. current — of water
  9. scale — size or range
  10. tear — from crying
  11. court — of law
  12. tear — to rip
  13. file — a line of people
  14. file — a tool
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. scale — in music
  17. current — electric
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. court — for sport
  21. current — happening now
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. roll — a cake
  24. bark — to shout

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