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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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Word bank
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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: rush · rest · game · pass · foot · cell · root · mine

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. rest — what's left
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. rest — a break
  6. game — a match
  7. foot — a measure
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. root — of a word
  10. rush — hurry
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. cell — in biology
  17. pass — a permit
  18. game — wild animals
  19. root — the cause
  20. cell — a phone
  21. mine — for digging
  22. rest — what's left
  23. root — of a plant
  24. mine — an explosive

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