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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. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. object — an aim
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. dip — to sink
  6. mate — a partner
  7. object — to protest
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. object — a thing
  12. pound — a weight
  13. toast — bread
  14. wound — an injury
  15. squash — the sport
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. mate — a friend
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. wound — an injury
  22. squash — to crush
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. mate — to breed

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