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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. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. charge — in control
  4. charge — a price
  5. capital — a city
  6. shower — to wash
  7. plane — a tool
  8. perch — the fish
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. staff — a stick
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. shower — rain
  16. capital — money
  17. wind — moving air
  18. charge — electricity
  19. staff — employees
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. wind — moving air
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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