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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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Word bank
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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. fine — all right
  3. drill — the tool
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. drill — a practice
  6. content — happy
  7. wax — to grow
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. drill — army training
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. game — wild animals
  13. staff — employees
  14. game — a match
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fine — high quality
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. staff — a stick
  21. content — the amount
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. hide — to keep secret

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