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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. present — the time now
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. row — to paddle
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. present — there
  10. saw — the tool
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. track — a path
  14. wake — a trail
  15. game — wild animals
  16. track — a song
  17. tear — from crying
  18. game — a match
  19. present — a gift
  20. row — a line
  21. track — to keep track
  22. pitch — completely
  23. tear — to rip
  24. tear — from crying

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