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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. can — a tin
  3. spring — a coil
  4. bear — the animal
  5. spell — letters
  6. kid — to tease
  7. kid — child
  8. spell — magic
  9. spring — the season
  10. can — a tin
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. spell — a short time
  14. shower — to wash
  15. shower — rain
  16. can — to be able to
  17. spring — of water
  18. bear — the animal

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