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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. object — to protest
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. object — a thing
  5. race — a contest
  6. clip — for paper
  7. hand — help
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. race — humankind
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. clip — to cut
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. key — for a lock
  16. key — the most important part
  17. race — the arms race
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. hand — in cards
  20. clip — a video
  21. fork — in a road
  22. key — in music
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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