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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. rest — a break
  3. kid — child
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. stock — shares
  7. land — ground
  8. kid — to tease
  9. band — a ring
  10. land — a country
  11. stock — goods
  12. rest — what's left
  13. band — a music group
  14. vault — a safe
  15. wound — an injury
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. land — to come down
  19. rest — what's left
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wax — to grow
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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