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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 120 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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. wound — an injury
  3. spring — a coil
  4. object — an aim
  5. wake — a trail
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. spring — the season
  8. spring — of water
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. capital — a city
  11. wound — an injury
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. capital — money
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. present — a gift
  18. present — there
  19. board — a committee
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. object — a thing
  22. present — the time now
  23. plane — a tool
  24. board — to get on

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