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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. cell — in biology
  3. spring — the season
  4. staff — employees
  5. spring — a coil
  6. saw — the tool
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cell — a phone
  9. spring — of water
  10. saw — the tool
  11. cold — not warm
  12. charge — a price
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. fine — all right
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. snap — to click
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. fine — high quality
  21. charge — in control
  22. staff — employees
  23. charge — electricity
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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