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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. row — a line
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. march — the month
  5. rash — hasty
  6. bound — certain
  7. march — music
  8. march — the month
  9. rash — a series
  10. bat — the animal
  11. charge — electricity
  12. bound — obliged
  13. mark — a grade
  14. charge — in control
  15. object — a thing
  16. row — to paddle
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. bound — tied together
  19. object — an aim
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. charge — a price
  24. mark — a trace

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