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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. game — wild animals
  6. mug — a cup
  7. shower — rain
  8. object — to protest
  9. mug — to rob
  10. deal — to handle
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. season — in sport
  13. game — a match
  14. rock — a stone
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. mug — a face
  18. season — of the year
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. shower — to wash
  21. rock — music
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. object — a thing
  24. calf — of the leg

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