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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 116 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  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. object — an aim
  2. object — to protest
  3. present — there
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. wound — an injury
  6. club — for dancing
  7. wound — an injury
  8. present — a gift
  9. club — for golf
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. rash — hasty
  13. rest — what's left
  14. present — the time now
  15. club — a group
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rash — a series
  21. bark — to shout
  22. rest — a break
  23. bark — of a tree
  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