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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. current — of water
  3. march — music
  4. march — the month
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. kid — to tease
  7. scale — in music
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. object — an aim
  11. current — happening now
  12. staff — employees
  13. kid — child
  14. object — a thing
  15. cold — an illness
  16. rash — hasty
  17. cold — not warm
  18. march — the month
  19. rash — a series
  20. staff — a stick
  21. current — electric
  22. scale — size or range
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. staff — employees

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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