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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. branch — a division
  7. cap — a hat
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. bore — to drill
  11. cap — of ice
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. bore — to tire
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. kid — to tease
  16. row — to paddle
  17. rock — a stone
  18. cap — a lid
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. row — a line
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. rock — music

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