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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. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. key — the most important part
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. bank — for money
  7. bank — of a river
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. scale — in music
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. kid — child
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. branch — a division
  17. key — for a lock
  18. band — a ring
  19. scale — size or range
  20. kid — to tease
  21. key — in music
  22. band — a music group
  23. bank — for money
  24. bat — for baseball

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