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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. craft — boats
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. press — to push
  5. tube — the underground
  6. club — for golf
  7. capital — money
  8. row — to paddle
  9. tube — a container
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. club — a group
  12. press — a publisher
  13. press — newspapers
  14. pop — soda
  15. pop — to visit
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. capital — a city
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. craft — a skill
  20. kick — in football
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. pop — music
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. club — for dancing

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