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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — for pool
  2. mine — for digging
  3. cue — a hint
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. bound — tied together
  6. craft — a skill
  7. bound — obliged
  8. ground — a position
  9. craft — boats
  10. ground — crushed
  11. row — to paddle
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. ground — the earth
  17. perch — the fish
  18. cue — a signal
  19. row — a line
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bound — certain

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