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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. clip — for paper
  4. mate — a partner
  5. present — there
  6. scale — size or range
  7. craft — a skill
  8. clip — a video
  9. mate — to breed
  10. present — the time now
  11. mark — a trace
  12. craft — boats
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. row — a line
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. scale — in music
  18. clip — to cut
  19. mark — a grade
  20. present — a gift
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. mate — a friend
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. stand — to bear

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