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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 116 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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. charge — electricity
  3. object — a thing
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. object — to protest
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. rock — a stone
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. charge — in control
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. chip — to eat
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. bat — the animal
  18. charge — a price
  19. rock — music
  20. row — a line
  21. row — to paddle
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. chip — for betting

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