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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. ground — the earth
  3. club — for golf
  4. ground — a position
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. kid — child
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. snap — to click
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. kid — to tease
  16. staff — a stick
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. club — a group
  19. ground — crushed
  20. wound — an injury
  21. staff — employees
  22. dip — to sink
  23. club — for dancing
  24. wound — an injury

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