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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. club — for dancing
  5. pass — a permit
  6. lean — thin
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. race — the arms race
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. fork — in a road
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. chair — a leader
  13. race — humankind
  14. club — for golf
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. club — a group
  19. race — a contest
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. wake — a trail

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