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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. chest — of your body
  4. kid — to tease
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. mate — a partner
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. mine — for digging
  12. kid — child
  13. saw — the tool
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. pitch — completely
  16. mate — to breed
  17. chest — a box
  18. chest — of your body
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. saw — the tool
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. fine — all right
  24. mate — a friend

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