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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. object — a thing
  3. object — an aim
  4. pop — soda
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. pop — to visit
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. pop — music
  11. craft — a skill
  12. net — after costs
  13. capital — money
  14. capital — a city
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. net — for catching
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. stem — to come from
  21. net — in sport
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. craft — boats

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