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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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. land — to come down
  3. last — finally
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. spring — the season
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. roll — a cake
  8. spring — of water
  9. staff — a stick
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. last — final
  12. staff — employees
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. spring — a coil
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. land — ground
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. land — a country
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. last — to go on
  22. roll — a list
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. staff — employees

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