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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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. pitcher — in baseball
  4. kid — to tease
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. rule — a law
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. club — for dancing
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. rule — government
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. row — to paddle
  18. capital — a city
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. club — a group
  22. row — a line
  23. club — for golf
  24. capital — money

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