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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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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: wind · race · last · staff · wave · spring · cabinet · deal

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. spring — the season
  3. wind — moving air
  4. race — humankind
  5. spring — of water
  6. wind — moving air
  7. deal — to handle
  8. staff — employees
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. race — a contest
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. spring — a coil
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. last — final
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. last — to go on
  20. staff — a stick
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. last — finally
  24. race — the arms race

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