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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. land — a country
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. row — to paddle
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. bat — the animal
  9. club — a group
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. land — ground
  15. squash — the sport
  16. craft — boats
  17. lie — to recline
  18. club — for dancing
  19. craft — a skill
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. squash — to crush
  22. club — for golf
  23. land — to come down
  24. bat — in an idiom

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