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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. shower — to wash
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. rash — hasty
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. wax — to grow
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. shower — rain
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. craft — boats
  13. kid — to tease
  14. cold — an illness
  15. suit — to fit
  16. kid — child
  17. rash — a series
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. suit — clothes
  20. craft — a skill
  21. suit — in cards
  22. dip — to sink
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. cold — not warm

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