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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. cue — for pool
  5. wind — moving air
  6. staff — employees
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. cue — a signal
  9. cue — a hint
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. wind — moving air
  15. kid — to tease
  16. press — to push
  17. press — a publisher
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. game — wild animals
  20. press — newspapers
  21. kid — child
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. staff — a stick
  24. game — a match

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