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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. spring — the season
  4. pitch — completely
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. row — to paddle
  7. rush — hurry
  8. spring — a coil
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. land — to come down
  13. land — ground
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. spring — of water
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. sharp — clever
  18. land — a country
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. object — a thing
  21. object — an aim
  22. row — a line
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. rush — a thrill

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