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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. staff — employees
  3. board — a committee
  4. file — a tool
  5. staff — a stick
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. chest — of your body
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. rush — hurry
  11. board — to get on
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. chest — a box
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. file — a line of people
  19. content — happy
  20. content — the amount
  21. staff — employees
  22. chest — of your body
  23. file — a document
  24. bat — the animal

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