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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 116 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 office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. prune — to trim
  4. last — to go on
  5. staff — a stick
  6. prune — to trim
  7. band — a ring
  8. drill — the tool
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. drill — a practice
  11. band — a music group
  12. staff — employees
  13. craft — a skill
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. craft — boats
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. cap — a hat
  18. cap — of ice
  19. drill — army training
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. last — finally
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. last — final
  24. cap — a lid

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