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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 116 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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. hand — help
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. face — to confront
  9. fine — all right
  10. face — part of the head
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. ball — a dance
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. fine — high quality
  16. ball — a great time
  17. row — to paddle
  18. hand — in cards
  19. face — to point toward
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. dip — to sink
  23. row — a line
  24. pitcher — a jug

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