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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. tube — a container
  4. cap — of ice
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. field — a subject
  7. kid — to tease
  8. file — a document
  9. tube — the underground
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. file — a tool
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. kid — child
  14. cap — a hat
  15. file — a line of people
  16. lie — to recline
  17. field — farmland
  18. bat — the animal
  19. cap — a lid
  20. deal — to handle
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. field — for sport
  24. lie — an untruth

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