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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: shower · land · arm · season · bound · row · mate · deal

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. bound — certain
  3. mate — a partner
  4. land — to come down
  5. season — in sport
  6. land — ground
  7. land — a country
  8. bound — obliged
  9. mate — to breed
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. row — a line
  12. bound — tied together
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. deal — to handle
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. season — of the year
  20. shower — rain
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. mate — a friend
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. shower — to wash

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