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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. face — to point toward
  5. row — a line
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. game — a match
  10. face — to confront
  11. row — to paddle
  12. face — part of the head
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. fine — all right
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. shower — to wash
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. bat — the animal
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. chair — a leader
  23. game — wild animals
  24. fine — high quality

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