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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. mate — to breed
  3. march — the month
  4. row — a line
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. row — to paddle
  7. march — music
  8. mate — a partner
  9. hand — help
  10. mate — a friend
  11. march — the month
  12. net — after costs
  13. bound — tied together
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. bound — obliged
  16. hand — in cards
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. net — in sport
  21. chair — a leader
  22. net — for catching
  23. stand — to bear
  24. bound — certain

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