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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. ball — a dance
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. object — an aim
  6. object — to protest
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — for sport
  9. kid — child
  10. net — in sport
  11. club — a group
  12. ball — a great time
  13. field — farmland
  14. club — for dancing
  15. club — for golf
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. net — after costs
  19. net — for catching
  20. object — a thing
  21. rule — a law
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. rule — government
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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