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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. pop — to visit
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. pop — soda
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. file — a tool
  12. staff — employees
  13. stem — to come from
  14. staff — a stick
  15. bat — the animal
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. rash — hasty
  18. plane — a tool
  19. file — a document
  20. pop — music
  21. rash — a series
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. file — a line of people
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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