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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. drill — a practice
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. bound — obliged
  5. key — for a lock
  6. key — the most important part
  7. drill — army training
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. bound — tied together
  11. bound — certain
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. fork — in a road
  17. wake — a trail
  18. kid — child
  19. kid — to tease
  20. drill — the tool
  21. deal — to handle
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. key — in music

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