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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. cap — a lid
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. wind — moving air
  5. kid — to tease
  6. foot — a measure
  7. suit — clothes
  8. cap — a hat
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. suit — in cards
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. shower — rain
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. shower — to wash
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. cap — of ice
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. wind — moving air
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. suit — to fit
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. mine — for digging

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