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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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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: firm · mate · tube · staff · cell · hand · rule · craft

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. staff — a stick
  3. rule — government
  4. craft — a skill
  5. craft — boats
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. hand — help
  8. staff — employees
  9. firm — steady
  10. firm — decided
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. staff — employees
  14. tube — a container
  15. cell — a phone
  16. tube — the underground
  17. hand — in cards
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. mate — to breed
  21. firm — a company
  22. mate — a friend
  23. rule — a law
  24. cell — in biology

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