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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 124 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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. press — to push
  6. hand — help
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. cell — in biology
  10. press — newspapers
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. hand — in cards
  15. row — to paddle
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. roll — a cake
  18. vault — a safe
  19. cell — a phone
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. press — a publisher
  22. bark — to shout
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. roll — a list

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