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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. can — a tin
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. deal — to handle
  6. kid — child
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. rash — a series
  9. can — to be able to
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. pit — a hole
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. content — happy
  16. pit — in a race
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. rash — hasty
  20. can — a tin
  21. band — a ring
  22. band — a music group
  23. content — the amount
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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