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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: club · rash · bat · land · spell · staff · saw · lean

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. staff — employees
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. lean — to bend
  7. spell — magic
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. club — a group
  10. saw — the tool
  11. rash — a series
  12. spell — a short time
  13. staff — employees
  14. club — for golf
  15. land — ground
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. saw — the tool
  18. lean — thin
  19. land — a country
  20. rash — hasty
  21. club — for dancing
  22. bat — the animal
  23. land — to come down
  24. spell — letters

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