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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. cap — of ice
  6. deal — to handle
  7. cap — a hat
  8. staff — a stick
  9. snap — to click
  10. staff — employees
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. file — a tool
  13. file — a line of people
  14. staff — employees
  15. cell — in biology
  16. last — final
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. fork — in a road
  19. last — to go on
  20. cap — a lid
  21. file — a document
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. cell — a phone
  24. deal — a big deal

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