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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. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. key — for a lock
  4. race — a contest
  5. drill — the tool
  6. kid — to tease
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. key — in music
  9. drill — army training
  10. degree — temperature
  11. charge — in control
  12. perch — the fish
  13. kid — child
  14. charge — a price
  15. dip — to sink
  16. charge — electricity
  17. drill — a practice
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. degree — an amount
  20. race — the arms race
  21. key — the most important part
  22. race — humankind
  23. degree — from a university
  24. dip — to dunk

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