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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. present — a gift
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. suit — clothes
  6. snap — to click
  7. kid — child
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. suit — to fit
  10. kid — to tease
  11. hand — help
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. mate — a partner
  16. present — there
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. pound — a weight
  19. mate — a friend
  20. mate — to breed
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. hand — in cards
  23. suit — in cards
  24. present — the time now

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