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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 teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. roll — a list
  3. roll — a cake
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. land — ground
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. land — to come down
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. land — a country
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. bat — the animal
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. cold — not warm
  24. cabinet — ministers

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