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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. object — a thing
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. staff — employees
  5. staff — a stick
  6. object — to protest
  7. snap — to click
  8. wound — an injury
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. club — for dancing
  12. staff — employees
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. wound — an injury
  15. chest — of your body
  16. club — for golf
  17. club — a group
  18. chest — of your body
  19. game — a match
  20. game — wild animals
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. chest — a box

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