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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. pass — a permit
  3. content — the amount
  4. file — a line of people
  5. mine — for digging
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. content — happy
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. ground — the earth
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. ground — crushed
  15. ground — a position
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. rush — hurry
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. file — a document
  20. file — a tool
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. mine — belonging to me

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