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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  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. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. hand — help
  3. scale — in music
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. chest — of your body
  7. chest — of your body
  8. cue — for pool
  9. scale — size or range
  10. cap — a lid
  11. kid — child
  12. cap — a hat
  13. chest — a box
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. cue — a hint
  16. cap — of ice
  17. chip — for betting
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. hand — in cards
  20. kid — to tease
  21. chip — to eat
  22. lie — to recline
  23. cue — a signal
  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