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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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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: present · wind · lash · plane · pass · chair · file · key

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. wind — moving air
  3. plane — a tool
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. pass — a permit
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. present — the time now
  8. chair — a leader
  9. wind — moving air
  10. key — for a lock
  11. file — a tool
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. file — a line of people
  14. file — a document
  15. present — a gift
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. key — in music
  20. key — the most important part
  21. present — there
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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