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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  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. key — for a lock
  2. net — after costs
  3. ground — crushed
  4. stand — to bear
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. fall — to drop
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. ground — the earth
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. fall — to drop
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. roll — a cake
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. key — the most important part
  15. net — for catching
  16. net — in sport
  17. pass — a permit
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. key — in music
  20. fall — the season
  21. roll — a list
  22. mine — for digging
  23. ground — a position
  24. pass — to spend time

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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