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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. object — to protest
  3. file — a document
  4. vault — a safe
  5. game — a match
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. game — wild animals
  8. race — humankind
  9. season — of the year
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. race — a contest
  14. race — the arms race
  15. bore — to drill
  16. object — an aim
  17. file — a line of people
  18. file — a tool
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. bore — to tire
  21. season — in sport
  22. object — a thing
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. fork — in a road

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