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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. object — an aim
  3. bulb — for light
  4. chest — a box
  5. object — a thing
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. object — to protest
  9. bulb — for light
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. row — a line
  12. lean — to bend
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. pop — music
  16. game — wild animals
  17. chest — of your body
  18. game — a match
  19. lean — thin
  20. row — to paddle
  21. pop — soda
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. chest — of your body
  24. game — a kind of play

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