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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. season — in sport
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. bear — the animal
  11. capital — money
  12. kid — to tease
  13. bear — the animal
  14. rush — hurry
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. season — of the year
  20. dip — to sink
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. capital — a city
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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