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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. rash — a series
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. chest — of your body
  5. shower — to wash
  6. sharp — clever
  7. pass — a permit
  8. chest — of your body
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. track — a path
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. chest — a box
  15. rash — hasty
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. bore — to tire
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. track — to keep track
  20. shower — rain
  21. track — a song
  22. bore — to drill
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. rash — on the skin

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