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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. stand — to bear
  3. rash — hasty
  4. staff — employees
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. rash — a series
  9. staff — employees
  10. field — a subject
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. staff — a stick
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. rest — what's left
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. field — for sport
  18. clip — a video
  19. clip — to cut
  20. field — farmland
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. rest — what's left
  23. rest — a break
  24. temple — a place of worship

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