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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. scale — size or range
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. club — for dancing
  6. face — to confront
  7. last — finally
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. face — part of the head
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. face — to point toward
  13. row — a line
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. last — final
  16. row — to paddle
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. scale — in music
  19. club — a group
  20. last — to go on
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. club — for golf

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