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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  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. staff — a stick
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. mug — to rob
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. vault — a safe
  8. staff — employees
  9. spell — letters
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. staff — employees
  12. degree — an amount
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. spell — magic
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. spell — a short time
  19. degree — temperature
  20. degree — from a university
  21. mug — a cup
  22. mine — for digging
  23. mug — a face
  24. plane — a tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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