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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. row — a line
  3. bear — the animal
  4. kid — to tease
  5. kid — child
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. swing — music
  8. bear — the animal
  9. cell — in biology
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. spell — letters
  13. spell — a short time
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. spell — magic
  16. swing — in golf
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. fine — all right
  20. fine — high quality
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. swing — to play on
  23. row — to paddle
  24. cell — a phone

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