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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. staff — employees
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. staff — employees
  5. roll — a cake
  6. swing — music
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. saw — the tool
  9. tear — from crying
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. saw — the tool
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. tear — to rip
  15. tear — from crying
  16. bat — the animal
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. swing — in golf
  19. pit — in a race
  20. roll — a list
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. swing — to play on
  23. pit — a hole
  24. bat — for baseball

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