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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. bear — the animal
  3. root — of a word
  4. staff — a stick
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. staff — employees
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. row — to paddle
  10. hand — help
  11. cell — in biology
  12. row — a line
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. wake — a trail
  15. bear — the animal
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. cell — a phone
  19. root — the cause
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. hand — in cards
  24. root — of a plant

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