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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 124 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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. squash — the sport
  3. squash — to crush
  4. object — an aim
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. field — for sport
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rash — a series
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. rest — a break
  13. rest — what's left
  14. bulb — for light
  15. object — to protest
  16. field — farmland
  17. saw — the tool
  18. rest — what's left
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. row — a line
  21. field — a subject
  22. saw — the tool
  23. bulb — for light
  24. object — a thing

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