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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  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. hand — help
  2. wax — to grow
  3. can — to be able to
  4. chip — to eat
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. key — in music
  8. can — a tin
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. kid — child
  11. mine — for digging
  12. key — the most important part
  13. can — a tin
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. plane — a tool
  16. chip — for betting
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. key — for a lock
  22. hand — in cards
  23. plane — an aircraft
  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