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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 124 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. David sat on the ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. swing — to play on
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. saw — the tool
  5. spring — of water
  6. kid — child
  7. spring — the season
  8. field — a subject
  9. field — farmland
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. field — for sport
  12. swing — in golf
  13. swing — music
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. face — to point toward
  16. spring — a coil
  17. face — to confront
  18. kick — in football
  19. face — part of the head
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. saw — the tool
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. kid — to tease

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