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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. band — a music group
  4. firm — a company
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. last — final
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. last — finally
  10. field — a subject
  11. firm — decided
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. firm — steady
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. field — farmland
  16. band — a ring
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. field — for sport
  19. saw — the tool
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. saw — the tool
  22. object — an aim
  23. object — a thing
  24. last — to go 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