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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. tube — the underground
  4. perch — the fish
  5. race — the arms race
  6. bound — certain
  7. kid — to tease
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. race — humankind
  10. scale — size or range
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. row — to paddle
  13. row — a line
  14. tube — a container
  15. kid — child
  16. race — a contest
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. bound — obliged
  20. scale — in music
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. bound — tied together

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