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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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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. row — a line
  3. degree — an amount
  4. row — to paddle
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. date — the fruit
  9. press — newspapers
  10. press — to push
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. degree — from a university
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. craft — a skill
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. craft — boats
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. press — a publisher
  22. degree — temperature
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. date — on the calendar

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