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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. chair — a leader
  4. scale — in music
  5. staff — employees
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. pound — a weight
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. scale — size or range
  13. cold — an illness
  14. staff — a stick
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. staff — employees
  18. cold — not warm
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. pitcher — a jug

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