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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 116 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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. row — a line
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. track — to keep track
  5. mine — for digging
  6. track — a path
  7. content — the amount
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. clip — for paper
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. clip — to cut
  14. track — a song
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. clip — a video
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. content — happy
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. content — videos and posts

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