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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. staff — a stick
  4. roll — a list
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. spell — magic
  7. ground — the earth
  8. spell — letters
  9. spring — of water
  10. squash — the sport
  11. spring — the season
  12. dip — to sink
  13. spell — a short time
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. ground — a position
  16. squash — to crush
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. staff — employees
  19. ground — crushed
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. roll — a cake
  22. spring — a coil
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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