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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. staff — employees
  3. firm — a company
  4. last — finally
  5. pop — to visit
  6. pop — music
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. last — to go on
  9. lean — thin
  10. cold — not warm
  11. pop — soda
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. firm — steady
  16. staff — a stick
  17. track — a song
  18. lean — to bend
  19. track — to keep track
  20. track — a path
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. firm — decided
  23. staff — employees
  24. cold — an illness

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