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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.

Make a worksheet

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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in 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. lean — to bend
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. bass — low music
  7. tube — the underground
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. bass — the fish
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. kid — to tease
  13. kid — child
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. tube — a container
  16. bark — to shout
  17. lean — thin
  18. bay — a part of the sea

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