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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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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. saw — the tool
  3. ground — the earth
  4. hand — in cards
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. mark — a grade
  7. bear — the animal
  8. ground — crushed
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. mark — a trace
  11. file — a line of people
  12. hand — help
  13. staff — employees
  14. band — a music group
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. file — a tool
  17. file — a document
  18. bear — the animal
  19. saw — the tool
  20. band — a ring
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. staff — a stick
  23. ground — a position
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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