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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 120 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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. wound — an injury
  4. last — final
  5. staff — employees
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. wind — moving air
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. current — happening now
  10. wound — an injury
  11. tube — a container
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. last — finally
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. staff — a stick
  16. current — of water
  17. wind — moving air
  18. rash — a series
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. tube — the underground
  21. dip — to sink
  22. last — to go on
  23. rash — hasty
  24. current — electric

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