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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 124 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 had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. key — for a lock
  4. row — to paddle
  5. key — the most important part
  6. key — in music
  7. fine — all right
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. squash — the sport
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fine — high quality
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. suit — in cards
  15. suit — clothes
  16. suit — to fit
  17. land — to come down
  18. fall — to drop
  19. land — a country
  20. land — ground
  21. fall — the season
  22. row — a line
  23. squash — to crush
  24. sharp — clever

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