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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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. pass — a permit
  3. spell — letters
  4. net — after costs
  5. spell — a short time
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. net — in sport
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. race — a contest
  10. band — a music group
  11. race — the arms race
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. race — humankind
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. band — a ring
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. stand — to bear
  20. spell — magic
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. pit — a hole
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. net — for catching

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