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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. kid — to tease
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. row — a line
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. row — to paddle
  10. ball — a dance
  11. bark — to shout
  12. kid — child
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. ground — a position
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. ground — the earth
  20. ground — crushed
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. ball — a great time
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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