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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. band — a ring
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. kid — to tease
  6. row — to paddle
  7. cue — a signal
  8. cue — for pool
  9. row — a line
  10. file — a document
  11. wound — an injury
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. content — the amount
  14. cue — a hint
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. kid — child
  17. band — a music group
  18. bore — to drill
  19. content — happy
  20. bore — to tire
  21. file — a line of people
  22. file — a tool
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. bore — gave birth

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