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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — employees
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. rock — music
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. vault — a safe
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. degree — from a university
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. rock — a stone
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. capital — a city
  17. hand — in cards
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. hand — help
  20. degree — an amount
  21. capital — money
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. staff — a stick
  24. degree — temperature

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