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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. hand — help
  3. staff — a stick
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. bass — low music
  6. staff — employees
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. mark — a trace
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. hand — in cards
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. bass — the fish
  13. season — in sport
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. season — of the year
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. stand — to bear
  22. mark — a grade
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. rush — hurry

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