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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. kid — to tease
  3. press — a publisher
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. capital — a city
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. drill — the tool
  8. press — newspapers
  9. capital — money
  10. shower — rain
  11. drill — army training
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. shower — to wash
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. game — a match
  16. snap — to click
  17. game — wild animals
  18. press — to push
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. drill — a practice
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. kid — child
  24. wave — with your hand

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