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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 116 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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. staff — employees
  3. clip — to cut
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. staff — a stick
  6. face — part of the head
  7. scale — in music
  8. face — to confront
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. present — a gift
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. scale — size or range
  13. tube — the underground
  14. present — the time now
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. tube — a container
  17. clip — a video
  18. face — to point toward
  19. chair — a leader
  20. clip — for paper
  21. present — there
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. staff — employees
  24. scale — for weighing

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