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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. game — wild animals
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. game — a match
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. kid — to tease
  11. shower — to wash
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. kick — in football
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. shower — rain
  18. stock — goods
  19. perch — the fish
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. stock — shares
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. kick — a thrill

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