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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. club — for golf
  3. pass — a permit
  4. pit — in a race
  5. fall — the season
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. shower — to wash
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. clip — to cut
  12. pit — a hole
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. chair — a leader
  15. clip — a video
  16. clip — for paper
  17. fall — to drop
  18. saw — the tool
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. fall — to drop
  21. club — for dancing
  22. saw — the tool
  23. shower — rain
  24. pass — to spend time

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