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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. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. fall — the season
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. game — wild animals
  5. kid — to tease
  6. cap — of ice
  7. fall — to drop
  8. cap — a hat
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. kid — child
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. tear — from crying
  14. bulb — for light
  15. bulb — for light
  16. tear — from crying
  17. cap — a lid
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. tear — to rip
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. game — a match
  23. fall — to drop
  24. patient — a sick person

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