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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 124 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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. kid — child
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. kid — to tease
  6. drill — a practice
  7. drill — the tool
  8. toast — bread
  9. lean — thin
  10. content — happy
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. chip — to eat
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. capital — a city
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. capital — money
  17. lean — to bend
  18. chip — for betting
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. drill — army training
  22. content — the amount
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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