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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. band — a ring
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. race — a contest
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. march — the month
  10. saw — the tool
  11. kid — child
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. race — the arms race
  14. rash — hasty
  15. rash — a series
  16. race — humankind
  17. march — the month
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. march — music
  21. band — a music group
  22. pitch — completely
  23. kid — to tease
  24. band — a rubber band

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