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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — employees
  3. tear — from crying
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. ball — a dance
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. tear — from crying
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. scale — in music
  11. hand — in cards
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. tear — to rip
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. hand — help
  16. scale — size or range
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. ball — a great time
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. staff — a stick

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