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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: mark · object · pass · fan · bat · pit · tear · patient

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. object — an aim
  4. mark — a grade
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. tear — to rip
  8. bat — the animal
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. tear — from crying
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. pass — a permit
  18. object — to protest
  19. tear — from crying
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. object — a thing
  22. pit — in a race
  23. mark — a trace
  24. pit — a hole

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