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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 120 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 the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. fall — the season
  3. staff — employees
  4. bat — the animal
  5. mark — a grade
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bark — to shout
  9. cap — a hat
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cap — of ice
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. staff — a stick
  18. mark — a trace
  19. fall — to drop
  20. stock — shares
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. fall — to drop
  23. stock — goods
  24. bat — in an idiom

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