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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: toast · present · wound · tear · pass · cabinet

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. present — a gift
  6. toast — bread
  7. tear — from crying
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. present — there
  11. tear — from crying
  12. wound — an injury
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. pass — a permit
  16. tear — to rip
  17. present — the time now
  18. wound — an injury

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