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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. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  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. row — to paddle
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. row — a line
  5. wound — an injury
  6. mine — for digging
  7. wound — an injury
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. cell — in biology
  10. pass — a permit
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. bark — to shout
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. cell — a phone
  17. foot — a measure
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. cell — in a prison
  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