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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 office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — employees
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. lie — to recline
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. ground — crushed
  10. kid — child
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. ground — a position
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. dip — to sink
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. staff — a stick
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. kid — to tease
  20. wound — an injury
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. ground — the earth
  23. wound — an injury
  24. patient — a sick person

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