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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. object — to protest
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. land — to come down
  6. court — for sport
  7. land — ground
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. object — a thing
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. degree — an amount
  12. field — for sport
  13. degree — temperature
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. court — of a king
  16. degree — from a university
  17. land — a country
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. field — a subject
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. field — farmland
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. court — of law

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