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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 don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. staff — a stick
  4. row — a line
  5. face — part of the head
  6. face — to confront
  7. chip — for betting
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. face — to point toward
  11. chip — to eat
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. rock — a stone
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — employees
  16. rock — music
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. sharp — clever
  20. mine — for digging
  21. row — to paddle
  22. degree — an amount
  23. degree — temperature
  24. degree — from a university

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