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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. wind — moving air
  4. mine — for digging
  5. club — for golf
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. content — the amount
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. content — happy
  10. pit — a hole
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. date — the fruit
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. club — for dancing
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. pound — a weight
  18. wind — moving air
  19. club — a group
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. object — to protest
  23. object — a thing
  24. pit — in a race

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