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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. kid — child
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cap — of ice
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. cap — a hat
  13. spell — a short time
  14. spell — magic
  15. kid — to tease
  16. snap — to click
  17. cold — not warm
  18. lie — to recline
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. spell — letters
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. cap — a lid
  24. pitcher — a jug

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