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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. row — to paddle
  5. swing — in golf
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. net — after costs
  9. bark — to shout
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. net — for catching
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. squash — to crush
  14. squash — the sport
  15. tube — a container
  16. tube — the underground
  17. net — in sport
  18. kid — to tease
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. kid — child
  21. swing — to play on
  22. row — a line
  23. deal — to handle
  24. swing — music

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