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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. staff — employees
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. rest — a break
  6. scale — size or range
  7. band — a music group
  8. snap — to click
  9. rest — what's left
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cell — a phone
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. rest — what's left
  14. staff — employees
  15. scale — in music
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. band — a ring
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. cell — in biology
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. cell — in a prison

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