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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  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. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. march — the month
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. kid — child
  5. spell — a short time
  6. net — in sport
  7. pit — in a race
  8. plane — a tool
  9. march — music
  10. rock — a stone
  11. net — for catching
  12. spell — letters
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. net — after costs
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. rock — music
  17. pit — a hole
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. spell — magic
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. march — the month
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. fork — in a road
  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