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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: clip · staff · pound · pass · game · chair · wound · ruler

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. staff — employees
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. clip — for paper
  5. wound — an injury
  6. pass — a permit
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. pound — a weight
  9. wound — an injury
  10. clip — a video
  11. staff — employees
  12. chair — a leader
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. staff — a stick
  19. clip — to cut
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. game — wild animals
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. game — a match

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