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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. staff — employees
  3. bound — tied together
  4. staff — employees
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. last — final
  9. club — a group
  10. mark — a trace
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. club — for golf
  13. mark — a grade
  14. club — for dancing
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. mine — for digging
  17. last — to go on
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. bound — obliged
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. bound — certain
  23. last — finally
  24. leaves — of a tree

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