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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. firm — a company
  4. kid — to tease
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. roll — a list
  7. firm — steady
  8. roll — a cake
  9. spell — letters
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. spell — a short time
  12. spell — magic
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. kid — child
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. row — to paddle
  17. firm — decided
  18. hand — in cards
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. scale — size or range
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. scale — in music
  23. row — a line
  24. nail — for a hammer

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