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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. pound — a weight
  4. mine — for digging
  5. drill — army training
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. present — there
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. track — to keep track
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. court — of a king
  12. track — a path
  13. court — for sport
  14. present — a gift
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. present — the time now
  17. drill — a practice
  18. track — a song
  19. pass — a permit
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. court — of law
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. drill — the tool
  24. straw — dry grass

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