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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  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. snap — to click
  3. mug — a cup
  4. march — music
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. rule — a law
  7. march — the month
  8. mine — for digging
  9. rule — government
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. vault — a safe
  13. object — an aim
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. season — in sport
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. season — of the year
  19. mug — a face
  20. march — the month
  21. mug — to rob
  22. object — a thing
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  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