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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: date · net · row · stand · rock · staff · cell · clip

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. stand — to bear
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. cell — a phone
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. date — the fruit
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. row — to paddle
  9. clip — a video
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. net — for catching
  12. staff — employees
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. clip — for paper
  15. rock — a stone
  16. net — in sport
  17. rock — music
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. row — a line
  20. net — after costs
  21. cell — in biology
  22. staff — a stick
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. clip — to cut

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