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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. kid — child
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. degree — temperature
  9. mark — a trace
  10. bark — to shout
  11. chair — a leader
  12. degree — an amount
  13. kid — to tease
  14. degree — from a university
  15. ball — a great time
  16. mark — a grade
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. hand — in cards
  23. ball — a dance
  24. mouse — the animal

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