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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. club — for dancing
  3. spring — a coil
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. court — of law
  6. wind — moving air
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. club — for golf
  9. row — a line
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. spring — the season
  12. row — to paddle
  13. club — a group
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. fall — to drop
  16. court — of a king
  17. fall — the season
  18. deal — to handle
  19. wind — moving air
  20. court — for sport
  21. fall — to drop
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. spring — of water

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