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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. cue — a signal
  4. track — to keep track
  5. kid — child
  6. kid — to tease
  7. pound — a weight
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. swing — in golf
  10. mate — a partner
  11. mate — a friend
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. swing — music
  14. track — a path
  15. track — a song
  16. cue — for pool
  17. cue — a hint
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. swing — to play on
  21. game — a match
  22. scale — in music
  23. mate — to breed
  24. game — wild animals

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