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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. wake — a trail
  3. chest — a box
  4. row — a line
  5. chest — of your body
  6. march — the month
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. stock — goods
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. board — to get on
  11. march — the month
  12. chest — of your body
  13. rash — a series
  14. spring — a coil
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. rash — hasty
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. spring — of water
  20. march — music
  21. stock — shares
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. spring — the season
  24. board — a committee

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