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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: staff · chip · drill · last · roll · saw · date · rest

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. saw — the tool
  3. rest — what's left
  4. drill — a practice
  5. staff — employees
  6. rest — a break
  7. drill — army training
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. last — final
  10. last — finally
  11. chip — to eat
  12. date — the fruit
  13. roll — a list
  14. drill — the tool
  15. rest — what's left
  16. saw — the tool
  17. staff — employees
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. roll — a cake
  20. staff — a stick
  21. last — to go on
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. chip — for betting

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