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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 train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. mate — a partner
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. court — of a king
  6. bat — the animal
  7. drill — the tool
  8. court — of law
  9. current — of water
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. mate — to breed
  13. mate — a friend
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. current — electric
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. drill — army training
  20. current — happening now
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. drill — a practice
  23. court — for sport
  24. hide — animal 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