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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. band — a music group
  3. root — the cause
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. band — a ring
  7. charge — a price
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. charge — in control
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. row — to paddle
  12. charge — electricity
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. root — of a plant
  15. row — a line
  16. kid — to tease
  17. root — of a word
  18. kick — in football
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. season — in sport
  22. season — of the year
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. band — a rubber band

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