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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — employees
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. shower — rain
  5. track — to keep track
  6. file — a tool
  7. staff — a stick
  8. file — a line of people
  9. track — a path
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. track — a song
  12. shower — to wash
  13. file — a document
  14. rule — a law
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. rule — government
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. rule — to rule out

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