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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. ground — the earth
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. wax — to grow
  8. kid — child
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. ground — a position
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. saw — the tool
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. ground — crushed
  18. bat — the animal
  19. date — the fruit
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. kick — in football
  22. kid — to tease
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. saw — the tool

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