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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. kid — to tease
  3. pop — to visit
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. pop — soda
  7. net — after costs
  8. pop — music
  9. key — for a lock
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. kid — child
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. bat — the animal
  14. net — in sport
  15. key — in music
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. key — the most important part
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. net — for catching
  22. dip — to sink
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. ruler — for measuring

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