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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: club · chair · row · arm · mate · cell

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. 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 — to paddle
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. club — for golf
  4. mate — a friend
  5. club — for dancing
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. mate — to breed
  9. club — a group
  10. cell — a phone
  11. mate — a partner
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. chair — a leader
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. cell — in biology
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. 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