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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 116 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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. fine — high quality
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. staff — a stick
  6. branch — a division
  7. key — for a lock
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. can — to be able to
  11. staff — employees
  12. dip — to sink
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. hand — help
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. can — a tin
  18. hand — in cards
  19. can — a tin
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. key — the most important part
  22. mine — for digging
  23. key — in music
  24. staff — employees

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