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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. fine — all right
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. staff — employees
  5. tube — the underground
  6. rest — what's left
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. rest — a break
  11. season — of the year
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. cell — a phone
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bear — the animal
  17. cell — in biology
  18. season — in sport
  19. rest — what's left
  20. deal — to handle
  21. fine — high quality
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. staff — a stick
  24. tube — a container

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