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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. bound — obliged
  3. fork — in a road
  4. bound — tied together
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — of your body
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. dip — to sink
  9. kid — to tease
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. kid — child
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. chest — a box
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. perch — the fish
  18. bound — certain
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. file — a tool
  21. file — a document
  22. file — a line of people
  23. bore — to drill
  24. bore — to tire

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