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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. wound — an injury
  4. shower — to wash
  5. mug — to rob
  6. mug — a cup
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. season — in sport
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. mug — a face
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. cap — a lid
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. cap — a hat
  17. kid — child
  18. shower — rain
  19. cap — of ice
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. bark — to shout
  23. kid — to tease
  24. bowl — to roll

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