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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 124 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. bulb — for light
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. capital — a city
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. capital — money
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. rock — a stone
  16. rock — music
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. cell — a phone
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. mine — for digging
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. cell — in biology
  24. pass — a permit

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