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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. staff — employees
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. tube — the underground
  6. scale — in music
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. fall — to drop
  9. spell — a short time
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. last — to go on
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. tube — a container
  15. fall — to drop
  16. staff — employees
  17. scale — size or range
  18. last — finally
  19. snap — to click
  20. staff — a stick
  21. spell — magic
  22. spell — letters
  23. fall — the season
  24. pitch — completely

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