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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. ball — a great time
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. sharp — clever
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. ball — a dance
  9. degree — temperature
  10. staff — a stick
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. staff — employees
  17. degree — an amount
  18. mark — a grade
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. pitch — completely
  21. mark — a trace
  22. degree — from a university
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. mark — to pay attention

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