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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. cold — not warm
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. net — for catching
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. bark — to shout
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. rest — what's left
  12. rest — what's left
  13. net — after costs
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. rest — a break
  16. row — a line
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cold — an illness
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. net — in sport
  24. arm — a part of something

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