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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. hand — in cards
  3. tear — from crying
  4. scale — in music
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. wake — a trail
  7. row — a line
  8. chest — a box
  9. row — to paddle
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. race — a contest
  12. chest — of your body
  13. race — the arms race
  14. chest — of your body
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. race — humankind
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. tear — to rip
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. hand — help
  22. foot — a measure
  23. tear — from crying
  24. row — a quarrel

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