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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. chest — of your body
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. cue — a hint
  6. key — in music
  7. spring — a coil
  8. key — the most important part
  9. cue — a signal
  10. key — for a lock
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wound — an injury
  13. spring — the season
  14. bound — certain
  15. row — to paddle
  16. bound — obliged
  17. chest — a box
  18. bound — tied together
  19. chest — of your body
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. spring — of water
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. cue — for pool
  24. row — a line

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