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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. hand — in cards
  4. hand — help
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. march — the month
  7. current — of water
  8. current — happening now
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. tube — a container
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. staff — employees
  13. current — electric
  14. march — music
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. chair — a leader
  18. staff — a stick
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. march — the month
  22. tube — the underground
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. date — the fruit

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