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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. wound — an injury
  3. club — a group
  4. face — to point toward
  5. wound — an injury
  6. ground — the earth
  7. row — a line
  8. face — to confront
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. dip — to sink
  11. ball — a great time
  12. ground — a position
  13. club — for golf
  14. ground — crushed
  15. degree — temperature
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. club — for dancing
  18. ball — a dance
  19. degree — an amount
  20. face — part of the head
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. degree — from a university

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