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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. mate — a friend
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. file — a document
  5. mate — a partner
  6. file — a line of people
  7. bark — to shout
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. staff — a stick
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. snap — to click
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. staff — employees
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. file — a tool
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. mate — to breed
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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