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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. can — to be able to
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. row — to paddle
  5. can — a tin
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. row — a line
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. key — the most important part
  10. cell — a phone
  11. toast — bread
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. key — for a lock
  15. land — ground
  16. cell — in biology
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. key — in music
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. land — a country
  22. date — the fruit
  23. rush — hurry
  24. can — a tin

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