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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. kid — child
  5. kid — to tease
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — from crying
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. tear — to rip
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. degree — from a university
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. degree — an amount
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. rash — hasty
  20. degree — temperature
  21. rash — a series
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. dip — to sink
  24. dip — a sauce

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