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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. suit — in cards
  3. spring — of water
  4. staff — employees
  5. bore — to tire
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. spring — a coil
  8. craft — boats
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. suit — clothes
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. suit — to fit
  13. pound — a weight
  14. branch — a division
  15. file — a document
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. spring — the season
  18. file — a tool
  19. staff — a stick
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. bore — to drill
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. craft — a skill
  24. file — a line of people

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