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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 116 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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. stem — to come from
  3. bound — certain
  4. bound — obliged
  5. bound — tied together
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. object — to protest
  8. game — a match
  9. mug — to rob
  10. object — a thing
  11. lean — to bend
  12. mug — a face
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. clip — a video
  15. mug — a cup
  16. lean — thin
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. clip — for paper
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. kick — in football
  23. game — wild animals
  24. clip — to cut

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