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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 116 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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. saw — the tool
  6. staff — employees
  7. rush — hurry
  8. tube — the underground
  9. mug — a cup
  10. bat — the animal
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. last — finally
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. last — to go on
  17. tube — a container
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. mug — a face
  20. last — final
  21. staff — employees
  22. saw — the tool
  23. mug — to rob
  24. straw — dry grass

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