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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. wind — moving air
  3. land — ground
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bulb — for light
  7. hand — in cards
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. kick — in football
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. land — to come down
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. land — a country
  18. bulb — for light
  19. dip — to sink
  20. hand — help
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. kid — to tease
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. kick — a thrill

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