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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. row — to paddle
  3. roll — a cake
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. tear — to rip
  6. roll — a list
  7. season — of the year
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. tear — from crying
  10. kick — in football
  11. season — in sport
  12. swing — music
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. row — a line
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. swing — in golf
  19. sharp — clever
  20. tear — from crying
  21. swing — to play on
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. nail — for a hammer

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