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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 120 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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. capital — money
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. band — a ring
  5. pop — to visit
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. capital — a city
  8. pop — soda
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. band — a music group
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. row — a line
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. spring — the season
  21. spring — a coil
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. pop — music
  24. spring — of water

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