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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. spring — of water
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. chair — a leader
  5. row — to paddle
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. rock — music
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. spring — the season
  11. spring — a coil
  12. prune — to trim
  13. prune — to trim
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. kick — in football
  16. rock — a stone
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. prune — the fruit

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