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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. mate — a friend
  3. rest — what's left
  4. fall — the season
  5. mate — to breed
  6. object — to protest
  7. march — the month
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. craft — a skill
  10. rest — what's left
  11. last — final
  12. mate — a partner
  13. fall — to drop
  14. last — to go on
  15. game — a match
  16. fall — to drop
  17. march — music
  18. rest — a break
  19. last — finally
  20. march — the month
  21. object — a thing
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. craft — boats
  24. game — wild animals

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