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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. craft — boats
  4. clip — for paper
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. fork — in a road
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. pitch — completely
  10. craft — a skill
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. wax — to grow
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. clip — a video
  15. kid — to tease
  16. clip — to cut
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. deal — to handle
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. rock — a stone
  23. rock — music
  24. fork — a garden tool

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