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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. tube — the underground
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. land — ground
  6. club — for dancing
  7. shower — to wash
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. tube — a container
  10. land — to come down
  11. firm — a company
  12. firm — decided
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. spell — magic
  15. land — a country
  16. spell — letters
  17. firm — steady
  18. shower — rain
  19. club — a group
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. club — for golf
  22. staff — employees
  23. spell — a short time
  24. staff — a stick

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