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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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468
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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — child
  3. wind — moving air
  4. band — a music group
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. present — the time now
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. present — there
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. band — a ring
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. present — a gift
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. bat — the animal
  20. wind — moving air
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. safe — out of danger

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