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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. capital — a city
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. row — a line
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. row — to paddle
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. cell — in biology
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. cell — a phone
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. capital — money
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. wound — an injury
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. straw — dry grass

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