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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 120 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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. pop — soda
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. pop — music
  6. pop — to visit
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. plane — a tool
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. squash — the sport
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. squash — to crush
  14. mine — for digging
  15. kid — child
  16. hand — help
  17. kid — to tease
  18. squash — the vegetable

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