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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 116 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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. fine — high quality
  3. fine — all right
  4. land — a country
  5. staff — employees
  6. cap — a hat
  7. saw — the tool
  8. land — ground
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. bank — for money
  11. bank — of a river
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. cap — a lid
  15. cap — of ice
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. land — to come down
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. saw — the tool
  22. bank — for money
  23. staff — employees
  24. fine — a penalty

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