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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. drill — a practice
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. tear — from crying
  6. scale — in music
  7. spell — magic
  8. spell — letters
  9. scale — size or range
  10. hand — help
  11. object — to protest
  12. drill — the tool
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. tear — to rip
  15. staff — a stick
  16. spell — a short time
  17. deal — to handle
  18. staff — employees
  19. hand — in cards
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. drill — army training
  22. staff — employees
  23. object — a thing
  24. tear — from crying

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