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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. kid — to tease
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. kid — child
  6. bark — to shout
  7. drill — the tool
  8. drill — a practice
  9. row — a line
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. bear — the animal
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. bear — the animal
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. drill — army training
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. stem — to come from
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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