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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 don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. row — to paddle
  4. rock — a stone
  5. chip — for betting
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. sharp — clever
  8. row — a line
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. capital — a city
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. capital — money
  14. kid — to tease
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. toast — bread
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. chip — to eat
  21. rock — music
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. kid — child
  24. chip — in a computer

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