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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 124 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. season — of the year
  3. row — a line
  4. staff — employees
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. content — happy
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — what's left
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. rest — a break
  12. craft — a skill
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. row — to paddle
  15. staff — a stick
  16. file — a line of people
  17. craft — boats
  18. file — a document
  19. season — in sport
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. content — the amount
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. file — a tool

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