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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. kid — child
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. mate — a friend
  7. band — a ring
  8. band — a music group
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. chip — to eat
  12. lean — thin
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. mate — to breed
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mine — for digging
  18. chip — for betting
  19. lean — to bend
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. stem — to come from
  22. kid — to tease
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. mine — an explosive

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