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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. kid — to tease
  3. dip — to sink
  4. last — to go on
  5. last — final
  6. game — wild animals
  7. capital — money
  8. mine — for digging
  9. root — the cause
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. root — of a plant
  12. root — of a word
  13. kid — child
  14. mark — a grade
  15. mark — a trace
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. last — finally
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. capital — a city
  22. game — a match
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. dip — to dunk

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