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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. cap — a lid
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. mark — a grade
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — moving air
  9. deal — to handle
  10. cap — of ice
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. kid — child
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. scale — size or range
  17. cap — a hat
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. mark — a trace
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. scale — in music

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