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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. object — an aim
  3. object — to protest
  4. object — a thing
  5. current — of water
  6. prune — to trim
  7. deal — to handle
  8. current — happening now
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. drill — the tool
  13. prune — to trim
  14. drill — a practice
  15. cell — a phone
  16. pound — a weight
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. cell — in biology
  19. game — wild animals
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. drill — army training
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. current — electric

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