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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 116 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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. hand — help
  4. race — humankind
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. kid — to tease
  7. chip — to eat
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. net — for catching
  11. race — the arms race
  12. swing — to play on
  13. net — in sport
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. chip — for betting
  17. kid — child
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. race — a contest
  20. swing — in golf
  21. swing — music
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. hand — in cards
  24. net — after costs

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