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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. mine — for digging
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. bank — for money
  6. bank — for money
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. cap — a lid
  9. content — happy
  10. deal — to handle
  11. tube — a container
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. kid — to tease
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. bank — of a river
  16. tube — the underground
  17. pit — a hole
  18. cap — of ice
  19. content — the amount
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. cap — a hat
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. pit — in a race

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