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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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. wind — moving air
  4. board — a committee
  5. net — in sport
  6. wind — moving air
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. season — in sport
  10. kid — to tease
  11. dip — to sink
  12. board — to get on
  13. pop — music
  14. present — the time now
  15. net — for catching
  16. pop — soda
  17. pop — to visit
  18. present — there
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. season — of the year
  21. present — a gift
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. net — after costs
  24. board — a flat piece

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