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

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. kick — in football
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. staff — a stick
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. cell — a phone
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. tear — from crying
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. cell — in biology
  15. staff — employees
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying

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