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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. charge — a price
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. chest — of your body
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. row — to paddle
  12. row — a line
  13. key — the most important part
  14. shower — to wash
  15. charge — electricity
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. chest — a box
  18. charge — in control
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bear — the animal
  21. key — in music
  22. chest — of your body
  23. key — for a lock
  24. shower — rain

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