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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. rest — what's left
  4. tear — to rip
  5. object — a thing
  6. board — a committee
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. board — to get on
  9. tear — from crying
  10. game — a match
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. rest — a break
  16. tear — from crying
  17. game — wild animals
  18. kid — child
  19. object — an aim
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. rest — what's left
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. kid — to tease

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