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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. mate — to breed
  3. row — a line
  4. court — of law
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. board — to get on
  7. content — happy
  8. row — to paddle
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. pop — soda
  12. court — of a king
  13. mate — a friend
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. wound — an injury
  18. board — a committee
  19. pop — music
  20. pop — to visit
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. mate — a partner
  23. court — for sport
  24. content — the amount

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