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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 120 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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. drill — a practice
  7. object — a thing
  8. spring — a coil
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. object — to protest
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. drill — the tool
  14. craft — boats
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. drill — army training
  17. lie — to recline
  18. craft — a skill
  19. kid — child
  20. spring — the season
  21. spring — of water
  22. object — an aim
  23. bat — the animal
  24. lie — an untruth

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