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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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. present — there
  4. saw — the tool
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. present — the time now
  8. present — a gift
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. pop — soda
  12. bat — the animal
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. ground — crushed
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. ground — a position
  18. pop — music
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. plane — a tool
  21. pop — to visit
  22. object — a thing
  23. ground — the earth
  24. saw — the tool

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