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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. row — to paddle
  3. chest — a box
  4. mug — a cup
  5. tear — to rip
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. mug — to rob
  8. mug — a face
  9. chest — of your body
  10. rush — hurry
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. row — a line
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. chest — of your body
  17. tear — from crying
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. tear — from crying
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. fork — in a road
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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