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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 120 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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. staff — employees
  4. tear — to rip
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. hand — in cards
  7. rule — a law
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. staff — employees
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. scale — size or range
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. craft — boats
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. scale — in music
  18. craft — a skill
  19. rule — government
  20. staff — a stick
  21. tear — from crying
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. tear — from crying
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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