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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. object — an aim
  3. row — to paddle
  4. ground — a position
  5. object — a thing
  6. track — a path
  7. ground — crushed
  8. row — a line
  9. perch — the fish
  10. kid — to tease
  11. spring — of water
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. track — to keep track
  17. kid — child
  18. ground — the earth
  19. track — a song
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. object — to protest
  22. spring — the season
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. row — a quarrel

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