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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. game — wild animals
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wind — moving air
  5. chest — of your body
  6. season — of the year
  7. pit — a hole
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. wind — moving air
  15. chest — a box
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. pit — in a race
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. season — in sport
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. chest — of your body
  24. game — a match

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