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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. row — to paddle
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. plane — a tool
  8. bound — certain
  9. wound — an injury
  10. key — for a lock
  11. lean — thin
  12. kid — child
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. cold — an illness
  16. key — the most important part
  17. bound — obliged
  18. key — in music
  19. row — a line
  20. wound — an injury
  21. lean — to bend
  22. kid — to tease
  23. cold — not warm
  24. bound — tied together

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