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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. can — a tin
  3. hand — in cards
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. bat — the animal
  6. key — the most important part
  7. chest — of your body
  8. staff — a stick
  9. hand — help
  10. can — a tin
  11. chest — of your body
  12. pound — a weight
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. chest — a box
  15. key — in music
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. key — for a lock
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. can — to be able to
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. staff — employees

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