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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. kid — to tease
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. field — for sport
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. field — farmland
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. kid — child
  11. spell — magic
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. club — for dancing
  14. tube — the underground
  15. field — a subject
  16. spring — the season
  17. club — for golf
  18. spring — a coil
  19. spell — letters
  20. spell — a short time
  21. club — a group
  22. spring — of water
  23. tube — a container
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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