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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 120 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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wake — a trail
  5. present — there
  6. present — the time now
  7. lean — thin
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. object — an aim
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. stock — goods
  12. chair — a leader
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. present — a gift
  15. wind — moving air
  16. kid — to tease
  17. stock — shares
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. object — a thing
  21. lean — to bend
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. wind — moving air
  24. object — to protest

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