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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. saw — the tool
  7. chair — a leader
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. kid — child
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. snap — to click
  14. kid — to tease
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. saw — the tool
  22. ball — a great time
  23. dip — to sink
  24. ball — a round shape

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