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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. bat — the animal
  10. dip — to sink
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. plane — a tool
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. kid — child
  19. capital — a city
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. kid — to tease
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. capital — money
  24. plane — an aircraft

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