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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. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. field — farmland
  4. field — for sport
  5. key — in music
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. ground — the earth
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. field — a subject
  10. object — an aim
  11. ground — crushed
  12. pass — a permit
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. key — the most important part
  18. key — for a lock
  19. capital — money
  20. capital — a city
  21. ground — a position
  22. object — a thing
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. object — to protest

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