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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. object — an aim
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. mug — a face
  5. season — in sport
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. object — a thing
  9. file — a tool
  10. file — a document
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. stem — to come from
  13. prune — to trim
  14. mug — to rob
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. mug — a cup
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. season — of the year
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. file — a line of people
  23. vault — a safe
  24. season — to add flavour

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