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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — a stick
  3. lie — to recline
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. spell — magic
  6. spell — letters
  7. chest — of your body
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. staff — employees
  12. tube — a container
  13. spell — a short time
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. rest — what's left
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. rest — a break
  18. wax — to grow
  19. rest — what's left
  20. tube — the underground
  21. chest — of your body
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. bark — to shout
  24. chest — a box

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