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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. kid — to tease
  3. hand — help
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. bear — the animal
  8. staff — a stick
  9. board — to get on
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. staff — employees
  12. hand — in cards
  13. cell — in biology
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. bear — the animal
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. kid — child
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. wound — an injury
  21. staff — employees
  22. cell — a phone
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. board — a committee

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