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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 120 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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. pass — a permit
  3. rule — a law
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. net — after costs
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. net — in sport
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. fork — in a road
  13. ground — crushed
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. chest — of your body
  16. ground — a position
  17. chest — of your body
  18. rule — government
  19. chest — a box
  20. stem — to come from
  21. net — for catching
  22. ground — the earth
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. ball — a dance

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