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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. staff — a stick
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. stock — goods
  7. roll — a list
  8. ball — a dance
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. staff — employees
  11. roll — a cake
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. race — the arms race
  15. spell — magic
  16. stock — shares
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. race — humankind
  19. kick — in football
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. spell — letters
  22. spell — a short time
  23. ball — a great time
  24. race — a contest

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