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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. squash — the sport
  4. spell — magic
  5. field — farmland
  6. perch — the fish
  7. field — a subject
  8. cap — of ice
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. kid — to tease
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. cap — a hat
  16. bear — the animal
  17. spell — letters
  18. spell — a short time
  19. cap — a lid
  20. kid — child
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. field — for sport
  23. squash — to crush
  24. perch — for a bird

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