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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 120 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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. chest — of your body
  3. court — for sport
  4. chest — a box
  5. present — there
  6. drill — army training
  7. march — music
  8. court — of law
  9. march — the month
  10. march — the month
  11. mate — a partner
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. present — a gift
  14. lie — to recline
  15. drill — the tool
  16. kid — to tease
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. court — of a king
  19. mate — a friend
  20. drill — a practice
  21. kid — child
  22. mate — to breed
  23. chest — of your body
  24. present — the time now

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