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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. current — of water
  3. rock — music
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. staff — a stick
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. band — a music group
  8. spring — of water
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. spring — a coil
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. band — a ring
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. current — happening now
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. current — electric
  19. rock — a stone
  20. wake — a trail
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. staff — employees
  23. branch — a division
  24. spring — the season

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