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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: pit · court · fork · staff · lie · tear · scale · pass

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. tear — to rip
  5. court — for sport
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. court — of law
  10. pit — in a race
  11. staff — employees
  12. lie — to recline
  13. staff — employees
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — from crying
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. fork — in a road
  18. scale — size or range
  19. scale — in music
  20. pit — a hole
  21. staff — a stick
  22. court — of a king
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. scale — for weighing

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