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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. spring — a coil
  3. plane — a tool
  4. field — for sport
  5. root — the cause
  6. bulb — for light
  7. capital — money
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — farmland
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. kid — to tease
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. capital — a city
  16. root — of a word
  17. spring — of water
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. kid — child
  20. spring — the season
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. root — of a plant

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