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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 120 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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. row — to paddle
  3. spring — a coil
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — final
  8. mine — for digging
  9. stand — to bear
  10. ball — a dance
  11. spring — the season
  12. spring — of water
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. ball — a great time
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. last — finally

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