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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. fall — to drop
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. fall — to drop
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. fall — the season
  8. prune — to trim
  9. band — a music group
  10. prune — to trim
  11. content — happy
  12. mate — a friend
  13. saw — the tool
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. staff — employees
  16. content — the amount
  17. band — a ring
  18. saw — the tool
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. mate — a partner
  22. staff — a stick
  23. mate — to breed
  24. arm — part of the body

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