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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. file — a tool
  3. object — a thing
  4. bore — to tire
  5. kid — to tease
  6. drill — a practice
  7. bore — to drill
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. file — a line of people
  10. object — to protest
  11. drill — army training
  12. drill — the tool
  13. kid — child
  14. file — a document
  15. ground — crushed
  16. ground — a position
  17. object — an aim
  18. ground — the earth

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