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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. swing — music
  3. kid — child
  4. shower — rain
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. mug — to rob
  7. file — a tool
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. swing — to play on
  10. swing — in golf
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. shower — to wash
  13. bark — to shout
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. file — a line of people
  16. file — a document
  17. kid — to tease
  18. mug — a face
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. mug — a cup
  24. hide — animal skin

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