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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. date — the fruit
  3. staff — employees
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. staff — a stick
  6. pound — a weight
  7. rush — hurry
  8. shower — to wash
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. lean — thin
  14. shower — rain
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. lean — to bend
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. row — to paddle
  20. chip — for betting
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. chip — to eat
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. staff — employees

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