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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — a stick
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. tube — the underground
  5. drill — the tool
  6. drill — a practice
  7. tear — from crying
  8. branch — a division
  9. drill — army training
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. fine — all right
  16. staff — employees
  17. fall — to drop
  18. tube — a container
  19. fall — the season
  20. fine — high quality
  21. tear — to rip
  22. tear — from crying
  23. capital — a city
  24. capital — money

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