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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. deal — to handle
  3. staff — employees
  4. field — farmland
  5. kid — child
  6. kid — to tease
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. field — for sport
  9. object — an aim
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. staff — employees
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. field — a subject
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. object — a thing
  17. staff — a stick
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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