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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. charge — a price
  3. charge — in control
  4. saw — the tool
  5. file — a tool
  6. spring — the season
  7. spring — a coil
  8. last — finally
  9. press — to push
  10. saw — the tool
  11. last — final
  12. staff — employees
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. file — a document
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. press — newspapers
  17. file — a line of people
  18. press — a publisher
  19. charge — electricity
  20. sharp — clever
  21. last — to go on
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. spring — of water
  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