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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. land — to come down
  3. drill — a practice
  4. kid — to tease
  5. kid — child
  6. suit — clothes
  7. land — ground
  8. drill — the tool
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. spring — a coil
  11. suit — to fit
  12. suit — in cards
  13. spring — of water
  14. spring — the season
  15. drill — army training
  16. wax — to grow
  17. land — a country
  18. wax — for sculpting

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