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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. staff — employees
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. last — to go on
  6. fall — the season
  7. rest — what's left
  8. rest — a break
  9. cell — a phone
  10. staff — employees
  11. last — final
  12. last — finally
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. land — to come down
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. staff — a stick
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. land — ground
  20. sharp — clever
  21. rest — what's left
  22. cell — in biology
  23. land — a country
  24. fall — to drop

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