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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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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: row · dip · mouse · hand · capital · rush · game · bear

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. capital — a city
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. row — a line
  7. capital — money
  8. bear — the animal
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. hand — in cards
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. rush — hurry
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. hand — help
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. row — to paddle
  18. game — a match
  19. dip — to sink
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. game — wild animals
  24. row — a quarrel

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