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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · mouse · cold · stick · sharp · racket · roll · spell

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. cold — an illness
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. staff — employees
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. spell — magic
  7. staff — a stick
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. roll — a list
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. cold — not warm
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. staff — employees
  16. spell — letters
  17. spell — a short time
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. roll — a cake
  24. sharp — clever

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