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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. object — to protest
  3. saw — the tool
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. game — a match
  6. object — an aim
  7. object — a thing
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. fine — high quality
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. rash — a series
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. game — wild animals
  19. rush — hurry
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. mine — for digging

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