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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. spell — magic
  3. mate — a partner
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. bank — for money
  6. mate — to breed
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bank — for money
  12. court — of law
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bank — of a river
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. spell — letters
  18. mate — a friend
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. court — for sport
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. row — to paddle
  23. spell — a short time
  24. court — of a king

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