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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. staff — a stick
  3. hand — in cards
  4. prune — to trim
  5. rest — what's left
  6. chest — a box
  7. rest — what's left
  8. staff — employees
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. mine — for digging
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — moving air
  16. chest — of your body
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. chest — of your body
  20. staff — employees
  21. prune — to trim
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. rest — a break

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