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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. stem — to come from
  4. board — a committee
  5. board — to get on
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. staff — a stick
  8. lean — to bend
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. shower — to wash
  11. spell — magic
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. spell — a short time
  16. mine — for digging
  17. lean — thin
  18. fine — all right
  19. shower — rain
  20. spell — letters
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. fine — high quality
  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