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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. bound — certain
  3. kid — to tease
  4. bound — obliged
  5. hand — help
  6. wound — an injury
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. kid — child
  11. dip — to sink
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. bound — tied together
  16. hand — in cards
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. wound — an injury
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. fine — all right
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. pound — a weight
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. fine — high quality

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