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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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468
Word bank
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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. row — to paddle
  3. object — an aim
  4. row — a line
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. chest — of your body
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. chest — of your body
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. degree — temperature
  13. chest — a box
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. degree — from a university
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. object — a thing
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. degree — an amount

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