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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. net — in sport
  3. key — for a lock
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. game — wild animals
  6. suit — clothes
  7. rest — a break
  8. net — for catching
  9. clip — to cut
  10. drill — the tool
  11. drill — a practice
  12. row — a line
  13. key — in music
  14. clip — for paper
  15. suit — in cards
  16. suit — to fit
  17. rest — what's left
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. clip — a video
  20. game — a match
  21. drill — army training
  22. rest — what's left
  23. key — the most important part
  24. net — after costs

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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