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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 116 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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. pass — a permit
  5. net — after costs
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. spell — letters
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. prune — to trim
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. pit — a hole
  13. net — for catching
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. sharp — clever
  16. fall — to drop
  17. snap — to click
  18. spell — a short time
  19. prune — to trim
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. pit — in a race
  22. fall — the season
  23. fall — to drop
  24. spell — magic

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