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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. mate — a friend
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wound — an injury
  6. club — a group
  7. drill — the tool
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. rock — music
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. fork — in a road
  14. mate — to breed
  15. row — to paddle
  16. wax — to grow
  17. mate — a partner
  18. row — a line
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. rock — a stone
  21. drill — a practice
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. drill — army training
  24. club — for golf

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