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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. row — to paddle
  4. root — of a word
  5. rash — hasty
  6. content — happy
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. root — the cause
  9. content — the amount
  10. row — a line
  11. bound — obliged
  12. object — a thing
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. root — of a plant
  15. rash — a series
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. bound — certain
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. object — an aim
  21. kick — in football
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. bound — tied together
  24. object — to protest

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