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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. present — the time now
  4. court — of a king
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. track — to keep track
  7. staff — employees
  8. bore — to tire
  9. pass — a permit
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. staff — a stick
  13. clip — to cut
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. court — for sport
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. court — of law
  18. clip — for paper
  19. present — a gift
  20. track — a song
  21. track — a path
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. present — there
  24. clip — a video

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