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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 116 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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. fall — to drop
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. hand — help
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bore — to tire
  10. spring — of water
  11. kid — to tease
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. fall — the season
  14. kick — in football
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. bore — to drill
  18. fall — to drop
  19. spring — a coil
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. board — a committee
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. board — to get on
  24. kid — child

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