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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. tear — from crying
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. court — of a king
  6. cold — not warm
  7. rule — government
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. tear — to rip
  10. pass — a permit
  11. court — for sport
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. tear — from crying
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. rule — a law
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. bat — the animal
  22. cold — an illness
  23. court — of law
  24. pass — to spend time

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