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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. kid — child
  4. roll — a cake
  5. mate — a friend
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. kid — to tease
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. roll — a list
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. snap — to click
  15. press — a publisher
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. press — to push
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. mate — a partner
  20. fork — in a road
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. mine — for digging
  23. press — newspapers
  24. mate — to breed

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