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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. charge — a price
  3. row — to paddle
  4. field — farmland
  5. object — an aim
  6. object — to protest
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. charge — electricity
  9. rash — hasty
  10. chest — a box
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. tear — from crying
  13. row — a line
  14. field — a subject
  15. bear — the animal
  16. charge — in control
  17. field — for sport
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — to rip
  20. bear — the animal
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chest — of your body
  23. object — a thing
  24. rash — on the skin

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