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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. prune — to trim
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. staff — a stick
  6. press — to push
  7. prune — to trim
  8. bass — the fish
  9. spring — of water
  10. press — a publisher
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. plane — a tool
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. spring — the season
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. spring — a coil
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. bass — low music
  21. staff — employees
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. press — newspapers
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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