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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: stick · pass · row · ruler · spring · staff · cold · pitch

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. staff — employees
  4. spring — of water
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. pass — a permit
  7. row — to paddle
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. row — a line
  10. staff — employees
  11. cold — not warm
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. spring — a coil
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. spring — the season
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. pitch — completely
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. cold — an illness
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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