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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. wind — moving air
  5. cap — a hat
  6. degree — temperature
  7. cap — of ice
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. degree — from a university
  11. degree — an amount
  12. kid — child
  13. cap — a lid
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. bore — to drill
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. bore — to tire
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. wind — moving air
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. kid — to tease

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