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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. rest — a break
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. rest — what's left
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. staff — employees
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. rest — what's left
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. clip — to cut
  12. clip — a video
  13. rash — hasty
  14. dip — to sink
  15. vault — a safe
  16. season — in sport
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. rash — a series
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. staff — a stick
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. staff — employees
  23. clip — for paper
  24. season — of the year

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