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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. prune — to trim
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. drill — army training
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. drill — a practice
  10. shower — rain
  11. rash — hasty
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. rash — a series
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. prune — to trim
  18. cold — not warm
  19. drill — the tool
  20. object — to protest
  21. shower — to wash
  22. object — an aim
  23. cold — an illness
  24. cold — the Cold War

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