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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. mate — a friend
  3. band — a music group
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. row — to paddle
  6. face — to confront
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. face — to point toward
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. deal — to handle
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. rule — a law
  16. mate — to breed
  17. mine — for digging
  18. perch — the fish
  19. band — a ring
  20. face — part of the head
  21. mate — a partner
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. row — a line
  24. rule — government

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