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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. hand — in cards
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. season — in sport
  5. rash — hasty
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. squash — to crush
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. shower — to wash
  10. shower — rain
  11. bound — obliged
  12. bound — certain
  13. row — to paddle
  14. hand — help
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. squash — the sport
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. rash — a series
  19. bound — tied together
  20. foot — a measure
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. season — of the year
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. foot — the bottom

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