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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. row — to paddle
  3. field — farmland
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. row — a line
  6. firm — decided
  7. firm — steady
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. perch — the fish
  10. mine — for digging
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. last — final
  13. last — to go on
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. lean — thin
  17. lean — to bend
  18. last — finally
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. field — a subject
  23. field — for sport
  24. mine — an explosive

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