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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. rash — a series
  4. row — a line
  5. object — an aim
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. bass — low music
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. row — to paddle
  10. bass — the fish
  11. roll — a list
  12. game — a match
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. roll — a cake
  15. game — wild animals
  16. mark — a trace
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. object — a thing
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. sharp — clever
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. mark — a grade
  24. rash — hasty

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