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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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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: bat · hide · pass · rule · spell · race · ball · lie

  1. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. spell — magic
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. lie — to recline
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. rule — government
  10. spell — letters
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. ball — a great time
  15. spell — a short time
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. rule — a law
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. ball — a dance
  20. race — humankind
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. bat — the animal
  23. race — a contest
  24. race — the arms race

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