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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. firm — decided
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. cold — an illness
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. present — there
  7. rush — hurry
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. present — the time now
  10. saw — the tool
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. saw — the tool
  17. firm — a company
  18. object — an aim
  19. present — a gift
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. firm — steady
  22. prune — to trim
  23. object — a thing
  24. cold — not warm

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