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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. spring — a coil
  3. cell — a phone
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. lean — to bend
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. lean — thin
  9. pitch — completely
  10. cell — in biology
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. charge — in control
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. staff — employees
  16. charge — electricity
  17. charge — a price
  18. staff — a stick
  19. spring — the season
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. snap — to click
  23. spring — of water
  24. cell — in a prison

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