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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: rule · wound · kid · firm · club · row · fan · bear

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. firm — steady
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. row — a line
  5. club — a group
  6. bear — the animal
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. kid — child
  12. rule — a law
  13. kid — to tease
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. row — to paddle
  16. wound — an injury
  17. club — for golf
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. firm — decided
  20. rule — government
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. club — for dancing
  23. bear — the animal
  24. wound — an injury

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