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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. track — a path
  3. kid — child
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. pound — a weight
  6. file — a document
  7. track — a song
  8. kid — to tease
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. file — a tool
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. track — to keep track
  15. content — happy
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. content — the amount
  19. row — a line
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bear — the animal
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. file — a line of people

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