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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. cell — a phone
  4. pass — a permit
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. court — for sport
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. staff — employees
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. cold — an illness
  11. mark — a grade
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. staff — employees
  14. mark — a trace
  15. court — of a king
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. staff — a stick
  19. court — of law
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bear — the animal
  22. cold — not warm
  23. wake — a trail
  24. bear — the animal

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