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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. rush — hurry
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. press — to push
  8. chair — a leader
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. wake — a trail
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. mark — a grade
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. staff — a stick
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. craft — a skill
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. staff — employees
  19. press — a publisher
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. mark — a trace
  22. press — newspapers
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. craft — boats

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