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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. row — to paddle
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. chest — of your body
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. land — a country
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. row — a line
  11. club — for golf
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. chest — of your body
  14. fine — high quality
  15. land — ground
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. club — for dancing
  19. chest — a box
  20. wound — an injury
  21. club — a group
  22. land — to come down
  23. fine — all right
  24. mouse — the animal

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