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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. game — wild animals
  4. row — a line
  5. spell — a short time
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. swing — to play on
  8. vault — a safe
  9. sharp — clever
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. swing — music
  12. shower — rain
  13. game — a match
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. spell — magic
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. mark — a grade
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. shower — to wash
  22. swing — in golf
  23. mark — a trace
  24. spell — letters

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