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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. key — the most important part
  3. kid — child
  4. march — the month
  5. roll — a cake
  6. roll — a list
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. wind — moving air
  9. march — music
  10. key — for a lock
  11. kid — to tease
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. wind — moving air
  16. dip — to sink
  17. key — in music
  18. march — the month

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