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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. shower — rain
  3. rash — a series
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. craft — a skill
  6. land — a country
  7. row — to paddle
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. row — a line
  10. land — to come down
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. craft — boats
  14. land — ground
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — to rip
  18. rash — hasty
  19. rush — hurry
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. shower — to wash
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. rash — on the skin

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