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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. fall — to drop
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. ground — the earth
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. fall — the season
  7. wake — a trail
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. ground — a position
  11. ground — crushed
  12. pass — a permit
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. perch — the fish
  17. fall — to drop
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. sharp — clever
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. fan — a supporter

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