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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. present — there
  3. present — a gift
  4. root — of a word
  5. present — the time now
  6. cell — a phone
  7. staff — employees
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. row — a line
  10. deal — to handle
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. file — a tool
  13. file — a document
  14. root — of a plant
  15. file — a line of people
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. cell — in biology
  18. hand — in cards
  19. root — the cause
  20. row — to paddle
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. staff — employees
  23. staff — a stick
  24. hand — help

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