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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 120 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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. object — to protest
  4. hand — help
  5. hand — in cards
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. track — a song
  8. spring — a coil
  9. spring — the season
  10. track — to keep track
  11. last — to go on
  12. last — finally
  13. object — an aim
  14. last — final
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. spring — of water
  18. track — a path

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