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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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. rash — a series
  4. rash — hasty
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. cold — not warm
  7. sharp — clever
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. staff — employees
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. lie — to recline
  17. row — a line
  18. cold — an illness
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. row — to paddle
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. cold — the Cold War

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