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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 seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. rash — a series
  3. row — a line
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. game — wild animals
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. wake — a trail
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. row — to paddle
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. object — an aim
  13. rash — hasty
  14. branch — a division
  15. game — a match
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. ground — a position
  18. object — to protest
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. ground — crushed
  21. ground — the earth
  22. deal — to handle
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. object — a thing

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