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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.

Make a worksheet

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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. net — after costs
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. staff — employees
  7. rush — hurry
  8. staff — a stick
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. current — of water
  11. rest — what's left
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. rest — what's left
  14. current — happening now
  15. mine — for digging
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. net — in sport
  18. cell — in biology
  19. season — of the year
  20. cell — a phone
  21. current — electric
  22. staff — employees
  23. net — for catching
  24. season — in sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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