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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. object — an aim
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. bound — tied together
  6. bound — obliged
  7. bound — certain
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. tear — to rip
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. game — a match
  14. game — wild animals
  15. tear — from crying
  16. object — a thing
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. bass — low music
  21. bass — the fish
  22. tear — from crying
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. trunk — of a car

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