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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. kid — child
  3. pop — soda
  4. deal — to handle
  5. object — a thing
  6. spring — of water
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. face — to point toward
  10. pop — music
  11. staff — employees
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. spring — the season
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. kid — to tease
  16. spring — a coil
  17. staff — a stick
  18. face — to confront
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. object — to protest
  22. object — an aim
  23. face — part of the head
  24. pop — to visit

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