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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 116 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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. key — for a lock
  3. craft — boats
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. key — in music
  6. staff — employees
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — the tool
  9. face — to point toward
  10. staff — a stick
  11. craft — a skill
  12. rash — a series
  13. rash — hasty
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. key — the most important part
  16. face — to confront
  17. face — part of the head
  18. saw — past of 'see'

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