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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 120 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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. staff — employees
  4. last — final
  5. race — the arms race
  6. last — to go on
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. net — in sport
  9. race — a contest
  10. net — after costs
  11. cue — a signal
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. mark — a grade
  14. row — a line
  15. staff — a stick
  16. hand — help
  17. staff — employees
  18. cue — a hint
  19. net — for catching
  20. hand — in cards
  21. cue — for pool
  22. last — finally
  23. race — humankind
  24. mark — a trace

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