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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. row — to paddle
  4. tear — from crying
  5. tear — to rip
  6. spell — magic
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. degree — from a university
  13. degree — temperature
  14. toast — bread
  15. spell — letters
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. row — a line
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. tear — from crying
  20. degree — an amount
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. spell — a short time
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. wake — a trail

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