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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. ball — a great time
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. scale — size or range
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. scale — in music
  8. key — for a lock
  9. kid — to tease
  10. key — the most important part
  11. kid — child
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. ball — a dance
  15. key — in music
  16. current — happening now
  17. current — electric
  18. current — of water

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