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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. row — to paddle
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. object — to protest
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. cell — in biology
  8. squash — the sport
  9. cell — a phone
  10. squash — to crush
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. spring — a coil
  14. date — the fruit
  15. spring — the season
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. rush — hurry
  18. fine — all right
  19. object — an aim
  20. row — a line
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. fine — high quality
  24. spring — of water

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