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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. face — to confront
  5. stock — shares
  6. stem — to come from
  7. drill — army training
  8. face — to point toward
  9. face — part of the head
  10. file — a tool
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. plane — a tool
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. pass — a permit
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. stock — goods
  20. drill — a practice
  21. file — a line of people
  22. file — a document
  23. drill — the tool
  24. stem — of a plant

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