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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. object — an aim
  3. fall — the season
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bat — the animal
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. rush — hurry
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. content — the amount
  10. cell — a phone
  11. content — happy
  12. bank — for money
  13. perch — the fish
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. fall — to drop
  17. object — a thing
  18. cell — in biology
  19. bank — for money
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. fall — to drop
  24. bank — of a river

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