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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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. kid — child
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. wind — moving air
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. kid — to tease
  14. mine — for digging
  15. pitch — completely
  16. bore — to tire
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. wind — moving air
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. ball — a great time
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. bore — to drill

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