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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. bear — the animal
  4. swing — to play on
  5. rock — music
  6. row — to paddle
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. cell — a phone
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. shower — to wash
  11. bear — the animal
  12. firm — a company
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rock — a stone
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. row — a line
  17. firm — decided
  18. rest — a break
  19. shower — rain
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. cell — in biology
  22. swing — in golf
  23. swing — music
  24. rest — what's left

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