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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. rock — music
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. mug — to rob
  6. band — a ring
  7. spring — of water
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. game — a match
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. rock — a stone
  12. band — a music group
  13. net — for catching
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. mug — a face
  16. net — in sport
  17. spring — the season
  18. net — after costs
  19. row — a line
  20. row — to paddle
  21. game — wild animals
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. spring — a coil
  24. hide — to keep secret

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