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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. object — to protest
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. cold — an illness
  5. charge — a price
  6. row — to paddle
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. tear — from crying
  11. charge — in control
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. cold — not warm
  14. tear — to rip
  15. charge — electricity
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. kid — to tease
  18. fork — in a road
  19. row — a line
  20. kid — child
  21. lie — to recline
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. tear — from crying
  24. object — an aim

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