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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. degree — temperature
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. ball — a great time
  6. object — an aim
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. suit — clothes
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. saw — the tool
  11. row — to paddle
  12. suit — in cards
  13. suit — to fit
  14. ball — a dance
  15. row — a line
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. saw — the tool
  18. degree — an amount
  19. rush — hurry
  20. degree — from a university
  21. land — to come down
  22. land — a country
  23. object — a thing
  24. object — to protest

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