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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. degree — an amount
  3. object — a thing
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. degree — from a university
  6. object — an aim
  7. ground — a position
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. can — to be able to
  10. bore — to drill
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ground — crushed
  13. tear — from crying
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. degree — temperature
  16. can — a tin
  17. tear — to rip
  18. bore — to tire
  19. branch — a division
  20. can — a tin
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. tear — from crying

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