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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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Word bank
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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: march · chair · rock · staff · fork · lash · pass · saw

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. pass — a permit
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. march — the month
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. saw — the tool
  13. staff — employees
  14. march — music
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. fork — in a road
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. chair — a leader
  19. saw — the tool
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. rock — music
  22. rock — a stone
  23. march — the month
  24. staff — a stick

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