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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. club — for golf
  3. cell — a phone
  4. chair — a leader
  5. mug — a face
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. club — for dancing
  9. club — a group
  10. mug — a cup
  11. ground — crushed
  12. ground — the earth
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. mug — to rob
  17. row — to paddle
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. ground — a position
  23. cell — in biology
  24. row — a quarrel

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