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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. pop — music
  3. kid — child
  4. saw — the tool
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. drill — a practice
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. dip — to sink
  9. face — to point toward
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. saw — the tool
  12. kid — to tease
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. ball — a dance
  15. chest — a box
  16. ball — a great time
  17. chest — of your body
  18. face — part of the head
  19. drill — army training
  20. drill — the tool
  21. chest — of your body
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. face — to confront
  24. pop — to visit

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