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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. fork — in a road
  4. kid — child
  5. tear — from crying
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. cap — of ice
  8. pound — a weight
  9. bark — to shout
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. tear — from crying
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. kid — to tease
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. cap — a hat
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. cap — a lid
  23. tear — to rip
  24. fork — a garden tool

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