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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 124 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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. mine — for digging
  5. race — the arms race
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. current — electric
  8. prune — to trim
  9. chest — of your body
  10. current — of water
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. current — happening now
  13. race — a contest
  14. race — humankind
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. prune — to trim
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. scale — in music
  19. kid — child
  20. scale — size or range
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. chest — a box
  23. chest — of your body
  24. kid — to tease

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