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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. staff — employees
  3. scale — size or range
  4. wind — moving air
  5. hand — in cards
  6. wind — moving air
  7. hand — help
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. bear — the animal
  10. spring — the season
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. staff — employees
  14. scale — in music
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. staff — a stick
  19. spring — of water
  20. spring — a coil
  21. pass — a permit
  22. bear — the animal
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. plane — a tool

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