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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. spring — of water
  4. drill — the tool
  5. roll — a list
  6. spring — the season
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. bound — certain
  9. tube — the underground
  10. tube — a container
  11. face — to confront
  12. capital — a city
  13. row — a line
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. drill — army training
  16. drill — a practice
  17. bound — tied together
  18. capital — money
  19. bound — obliged
  20. roll — a cake
  21. face — part of the head
  22. spring — a coil
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. face — to point toward

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