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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. staff — employees
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. clip — for paper
  5. file — a tool
  6. bear — the animal
  7. file — a document
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. suit — in cards
  10. snap — to click
  11. clip — a video
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. staff — a stick
  15. suit — clothes
  16. chair — a leader
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. suit — to fit
  19. file — a line of people
  20. bear — the animal
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. clip — to cut
  23. staff — employees
  24. chair — a professorship

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