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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 116 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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. hand — help
  3. row — a line
  4. lean — to bend
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. hand — in cards
  8. clip — to cut
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. clip — for paper
  12. court — of a king
  13. clip — a video
  14. fine — all right
  15. court — for sport
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. shower — rain
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. fine — high quality
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. shower — to wash
  23. lean — thin
  24. court — of law

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