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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. cap — a hat
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. tear — from crying
  6. staff — a stick
  7. bat — the animal
  8. cap — of ice
  9. rock — a stone
  10. row — to paddle
  11. toast — bread
  12. cap — a lid
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. tear — from crying
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. rock — music
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. tear — to rip
  21. staff — employees
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. row — a line
  24. toast — the most admired

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