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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. rock — a stone
  3. hand — in cards
  4. pound — a weight
  5. bat — the animal
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. rock — music
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. snap — to click
  13. dip — to sink
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. hand — help
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. kid — child
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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