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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. march — the month
  3. craft — boats
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. march — music
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. pitch — completely
  13. spring — of water
  14. bat — the animal
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. spring — a coil
  17. bass — the fish
  18. craft — a skill
  19. march — the month
  20. pass — a permit
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. spring — the season
  23. bass — low music
  24. bass — the instrument

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