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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. last — to go on
  4. cell — a phone
  5. bound — obliged
  6. object — to protest
  7. last — final
  8. track — a song
  9. object — a thing
  10. rash — hasty
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. bound — tied together
  13. rock — a stone
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. rock — music
  16. cell — in biology
  17. rash — a series
  18. last — finally
  19. object — an aim
  20. bound — certain
  21. track — to keep track
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. track — a path

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