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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 116 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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. object — to protest
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. lean — to bend
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. game — a match
  8. object — a thing
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. rush — hurry
  12. ground — the earth
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. ground — a position
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. object — an aim
  18. bat — the animal
  19. ground — crushed
  20. band — a music group
  21. band — a ring
  22. lean — thin
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. game — wild animals

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