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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. pit — in a race
  5. staff — a stick
  6. pit — a hole
  7. staff — employees
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. key — for a lock
  10. wound — an injury
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. key — the most important part
  14. squash — to crush
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. chair — a leader
  19. wound — an injury
  20. key — in music
  21. squash — the sport
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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