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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. mine — for digging
  3. can — a tin
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. board — to get on
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. board — a committee
  8. cell — in biology
  9. staff — a stick
  10. can — a tin
  11. staff — employees
  12. cell — a phone
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. perch — the fish
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. dip — to sink
  17. bat — the animal
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. can — to be able to

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