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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. mine — for digging
  4. race — a contest
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. kid — child
  8. race — humankind
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. squash — to crush
  11. land — a country
  12. race — the arms race
  13. saw — the tool
  14. squash — the sport
  15. land — ground
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. board — a committee
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. saw — the tool
  21. board — to get on
  22. land — to come down
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. bay — a horse colour

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