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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. staff — a stick
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. saw — the tool
  5. pitch — completely
  6. spring — the season
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. staff — employees
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. degree — from a university
  11. degree — an amount
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. charge — electricity
  15. charge — in control
  16. spring — of water
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. staff — employees
  19. spring — a coil
  20. degree — temperature
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. charge — a price
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. saw — the tool

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