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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 120 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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. staff — employees
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. staff — employees
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. swing — in golf
  7. can — a tin
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. degree — from a university
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. swing — to play on
  12. can — to be able to
  13. swing — music
  14. degree — temperature
  15. degree — an amount
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. can — a tin
  18. mine — for digging
  19. branch — a division
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. hand — help
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. hand — in cards
  24. staff — a stick

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