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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. kid — child
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. ground — a position
  5. ground — crushed
  6. spring — a coil
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. craft — boats
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. craft — a skill
  14. root — the cause
  15. bat — the animal
  16. spring — of water
  17. spring — the season
  18. root — of a plant
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. kid — to tease
  21. ground — the earth
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. root — of a word

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