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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. rush — hurry
  4. club — for dancing
  5. content — the amount
  6. content — happy
  7. rock — a stone
  8. degree — temperature
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. saw — the tool
  11. club — a group
  12. lean — thin
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. row — to paddle
  16. saw — the tool
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. club — for golf
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. row — a line
  22. degree — an amount
  23. degree — from a university
  24. lean — to bend

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