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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. last — to go on
  4. staff — employees
  5. foot — a measure
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. last — finally
  9. row — a line
  10. land — ground
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. lean — thin
  13. lean — to bend
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. row — to paddle
  18. last — final
  19. staff — a stick
  20. staff — employees
  21. land — a country
  22. band — a music group
  23. land — to come down
  24. foot — the bottom

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