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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.

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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. bear — the animal
  3. tube — the underground
  4. rush — hurry
  5. kid — child
  6. ball — a great time
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. hand — help
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. kid — to tease
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. hand — in cards
  18. tube — a container

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