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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. kid — child
  3. rock — music
  4. fine — all right
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. bear — the animal
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. staff — employees
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. game — wild animals
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. bear — the animal
  14. fine — high quality
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. clip — for paper
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. clip — to cut
  19. staff — a stick
  20. kid — to tease
  21. staff — employees
  22. clip — a video
  23. game — a match
  24. rock — a stone

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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