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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. swing — in golf
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. race — a contest
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. swing — music
  7. hand — in cards
  8. race — humankind
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. race — the arms race
  15. bound — tied together
  16. swing — to play on
  17. content — the amount
  18. bound — certain
  19. bound — obliged
  20. hand — help
  21. row — to paddle
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. content — happy
  24. temple — a place of worship

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