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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. chest — of your body
  3. land — a country
  4. spell — letters
  5. chest — a box
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. rest — a break
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. spell — a short time
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. spell — magic
  15. plane — a tool
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. land — to come down
  18. stem — to come from
  19. staff — a stick
  20. staff — employees
  21. chest — of your body
  22. rest — what's left
  23. land — ground
  24. rest — what's left

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