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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. fine — all right
  3. last — final
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. bore — to drill
  8. season — of the year
  9. season — in sport
  10. swing — to play on
  11. roll — a list
  12. row — to paddle
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. last — finally
  17. roll — a cake
  18. last — to go on
  19. bore — to tire
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. swing — music
  23. swing — in golf
  24. fine — high quality

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