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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. squash — the sport
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. hand — help
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. hand — in cards
  10. toast — bread
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. row — to paddle
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. foot — a measure
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. squash — to crush
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. bowl — to roll

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