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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. plane — a tool
  4. bank — of a river
  5. row — a line
  6. land — to come down
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. drill — the tool
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. hand — help
  12. bank — for money
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. row — to paddle
  15. drill — a practice
  16. sharp — clever
  17. land — a country
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. cell — in biology
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. bank — for money
  22. drill — army training
  23. hand — in cards
  24. land — ground

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