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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 124 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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. board — a committee
  3. spring — a coil
  4. sharp — clever
  5. staff — employees
  6. staff — a stick
  7. wound — an injury
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. board — to get on
  18. wound — an injury
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. spring — the season
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. spring — of water
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. hide — animal skin

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