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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. object — an aim
  3. cold — not warm
  4. march — the month
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. march — the month
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. pound — a weight
  9. squash — to crush
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. game — wild animals
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. object — a thing
  16. object — to protest
  17. march — music
  18. squash — the sport
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. cold — an illness
  24. safe — out of danger

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