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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. staff — employees
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. scale — size or range
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. cell — a phone
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. mark — a grade
  12. sharp — clever
  13. staff — a stick
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. scale — in music
  17. mark — a trace
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. cell — in biology
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. mark — to pay attention

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