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

Word bank: last · lean · staff · ground · cap · saw · deal · bat

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  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. saw — the tool
  2. staff — employees
  3. last — to go on
  4. staff — employees
  5. lean — thin
  6. cap — a hat
  7. ground — crushed
  8. deal — to handle
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. lean — to bend
  12. last — final
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. last — finally
  15. bat — the animal
  16. cap — of ice
  17. saw — the tool
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. ground — a position
  21. cap — a lid
  22. ground — the earth
  23. bat — for baseball
  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