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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. land — ground
  3. fork — in a road
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. game — a match
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. kid — child
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. land — to come down
  13. kid — to tease
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. snap — to click
  17. land — a country
  18. can — to be able to
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. can — a tin
  22. game — wild animals
  23. can — a tin
  24. pass — to spend time

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