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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. staff — employees
  3. staff — employees
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. bound — obliged
  6. sharp — clever
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. staff — a stick
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. bound — tied together
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. key — in music
  15. chair — a leader
  16. shower — to wash
  17. root — the cause
  18. root — of a word
  19. bound — certain
  20. key — the most important part
  21. shower — rain
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. root — of a plant

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