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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — a stick
  3. cold — not warm
  4. current — happening now
  5. ball — a dance
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. cell — a phone
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. staff — employees
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. cell — in biology
  14. ball — a great time
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. current — of water
  19. pitch — completely
  20. bear — the animal
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. current — electric
  23. sharp — clever
  24. bear — the animal

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