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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. ground — the earth
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — to rip
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. kid — child
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. tear — from crying
  12. ground — a position
  13. capital — a city
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. cell — a phone
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. row — to paddle
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. ground — crushed
  21. cell — in biology
  22. capital — money
  23. deal — to handle
  24. kid — to tease

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