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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. drill — army training
  4. row — to paddle
  5. rock — a stone
  6. drill — the tool
  7. content — happy
  8. charge — in control
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. rock — music
  11. cold — an illness
  12. march — music
  13. charge — a price
  14. march — the month
  15. march — the month
  16. cold — not warm
  17. content — the amount
  18. charge — electricity
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. drill — a practice

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