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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: cold · chair · foot · row · pit · key · snap · staff

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — employees
  3. foot — a measure
  4. staff — a stick
  5. pit — in a race
  6. key — in music
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. row — a line
  10. row — to paddle
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. pit — a hole
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. key — the most important part
  18. chair — a leader
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. snap — to click
  21. key — for a lock
  22. cold — an illness
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. cold — not warm

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