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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. pound — a weight
  4. pitch — completely
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — moving air
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. season — of the year
  13. rush — hurry
  14. season — in sport
  15. staff — a stick
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. staff — employees
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. dip — to sink
  21. chair — a leader
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. pitch — a sports field

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