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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. key — the most important part
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. kid — child
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. wax — to grow
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. current — of water
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. key — for a lock
  16. kid — to tease
  17. object — an aim
  18. key — in music
  19. vault — a safe
  20. current — happening now
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. current — electric
  23. object — a thing
  24. mine — for digging

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