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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. row — to paddle
  3. plane — a tool
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. row — a line
  9. cold — an illness
  10. cold — not warm
  11. mark — a grade
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. pop — music
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. pop — soda
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. mark — a trace
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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