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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. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. tear — from crying
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. can — a tin
  7. wound — an injury
  8. sharp — clever
  9. can — a tin
  10. tear — from crying
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. can — to be able to
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. kid — child
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. wound — an injury
  17. kid — to tease
  18. tear — to rip

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