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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. row — a line
  3. cap — a hat
  4. march — the month
  5. bark — to shout
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. cap — a lid
  8. roll — a cake
  9. mug — a face
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. march — music
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. roll — a list
  14. march — the month
  15. lean — to bend
  16. wind — moving air
  17. cap — of ice
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. mug — a cup
  20. lean — thin
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. mug — to rob
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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