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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 120 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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. mine — for digging
  8. kid — child
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. degree — from a university
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. degree — an amount
  18. kid — to tease
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. degree — temperature
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. bark — to shout

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