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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. roll — a cake
  4. wound — an injury
  5. ground — the earth
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. race — a contest
  10. dip — to sink
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. ground — crushed
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. object — a thing
  15. race — humankind
  16. wound — an injury
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. object — to protest
  20. ground — a position
  21. roll — a list
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. race — the arms race
  24. pitcher — a jug

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