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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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. squash — to crush
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. chip — to eat
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. content — happy
  9. press — a publisher
  10. cold — not warm
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. craft — boats
  13. content — the amount
  14. vault — a safe
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. squash — the sport
  18. press — to push
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. cold — an illness
  21. craft — a skill
  22. press — newspapers
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. chip — for betting

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