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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. squash — the sport
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. cold — not warm
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. lie — to recline
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. cold — an illness
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. dip — to sink
  13. craft — a skill
  14. clip — a video
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. clip — to cut
  19. craft — boats
  20. scale — size or range
  21. squash — to crush
  22. clip — for paper
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. scale — in music

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