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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. mate — to breed
  4. drill — a practice
  5. drill — army training
  6. content — happy
  7. file — a document
  8. file — a line of people
  9. rush — hurry
  10. stem — to come from
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. drill — the tool
  14. object — a thing
  15. object — an aim
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. content — the amount
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. mate — a friend
  22. file — a tool
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. mate — a partner

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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