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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. game — a match
  5. cell — a phone
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. kick — in football
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. object — an aim
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. saw — the tool
  13. rock — music
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. object — a thing
  17. rock — a stone
  18. race — the arms race
  19. game — wild animals
  20. cell — in biology
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. race — humankind
  23. race — a contest
  24. saw — the tool

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