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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. mate — to breed
  7. land — ground
  8. content — happy
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. land — a country
  12. mate — a friend
  13. game — wild animals
  14. ball — a great time
  15. ball — a dance
  16. game — a match
  17. dip — to sink
  18. content — the amount
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. pass — a permit
  21. mate — a partner
  22. land — to come down
  23. kid — child
  24. pass — to spend time

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