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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. bear — the animal
  6. spell — letters
  7. pound — a weight
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. ground — crushed
  13. spell — magic
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. ground — a position
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. ground — the earth
  18. kid — to tease
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. bear — the animal
  22. spell — a short time
  23. sharp — clever
  24. arm — part of the body

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