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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 120 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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. cell — in biology
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. chair — a leader
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. wound — an injury
  7. root — of a plant
  8. root — of a word
  9. rock — music
  10. rock — a stone
  11. cell — a phone
  12. track — a song
  13. wound — an injury
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. spell — magic
  17. spell — a short time
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. row — a line
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. track — to keep track
  22. spell — letters
  23. track — a path
  24. root — the cause

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