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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  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. arm — part of the body
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. bear — the animal
  4. sharp — clever
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. rock — music
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. bound — certain
  9. rock — a stone
  10. race — humankind
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. row — to paddle
  13. mark — a trace
  14. bound — obliged
  15. race — a contest
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. mark — a grade
  18. bear — the animal
  19. bound — tied together
  20. row — a line
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. race — the arms race
  23. sharp — with an edge
  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