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

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. ground — a position
  3. kid — child
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. object — to protest
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — not warm
  8. mug — to rob
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. object — a thing
  11. kid — to tease
  12. mug — a cup
  13. cold — an illness
  14. ground — crushed
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. ground — the earth
  17. mug — a face
  18. wave — with your hand

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