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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. game — wild animals
  4. pass — a permit
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. object — to protest
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. clip — a video
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. object — an aim
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. object — a thing
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. clip — to cut
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. game — a match
  21. clip — for paper
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. toast — bread
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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