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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. kid — child
  3. firm — a company
  4. shower — to wash
  5. firm — decided
  6. rule — government
  7. rule — a law
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. track — a song
  10. deal — to handle
  11. kid — to tease
  12. track — to keep track
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. shower — rain
  16. ball — a dance
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. firm — steady
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. track — a path
  24. ball — a great time

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