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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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Word bank
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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: mouse · key · cold · sharp · mark · net · row · tear

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. key — in music
  3. key — for a lock
  4. row — to paddle
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. net — in sport
  7. sharp — clever
  8. cold — not warm
  9. tear — from crying
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. tear — from crying
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. key — the most important part
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. row — a line
  16. cold — an illness
  17. net — for catching
  18. tear — to rip
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. mark — a trace
  21. mark — a grade
  22. net — after costs
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. mark — to pay attention

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