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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. sharp — clever
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. club — for golf
  5. club — a group
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. club — for dancing
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. row — to paddle
  12. bat — the animal
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. saw — the tool
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. foot — a measure
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. saw — the tool
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. sharp — with an edge

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