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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. staff — employees
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. mate — a friend
  5. spell — a short time
  6. board — to get on
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. tear — from crying
  9. staff — a stick
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. cap — a hat
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. plane — a tool
  14. spell — letters
  15. spell — magic
  16. cap — a lid
  17. staff — employees
  18. tear — from crying
  19. cap — of ice
  20. mate — to breed
  21. mate — a partner
  22. tear — to rip
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. board — a committee

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