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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. pass — a permit
  3. ground — the earth
  4. kick — in football
  5. branch — a division
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. staff — a stick
  9. staff — employees
  10. content — happy
  11. content — the amount
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. fall — to drop
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. ground — a position
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. ground — crushed
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. fall — the season
  23. fall — to drop
  24. bat — the animal

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