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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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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 · clip · tube · row · mark · firm · chair · rest

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. row — to paddle
  4. rest — a break
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. firm — a company
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. clip — to cut
  10. tube — a container
  11. firm — decided
  12. staff — employees
  13. staff — a stick
  14. clip — for paper
  15. tube — the underground
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. row — a line
  18. clip — a video
  19. staff — employees
  20. rest — what's left
  21. firm — steady
  22. chair — a leader
  23. rest — what's left
  24. mark — a trace

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