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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. present — a gift
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. cold — not warm
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. shower — rain
  10. present — there
  11. kid — child
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. present — the time now
  14. cold — an illness
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. dip — to sink
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. kid — to tease
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. shower — to wash
  24. hide — to keep secret

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