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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. plane — a tool
  3. suit — to fit
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. wound — an injury
  6. can — to be able to
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. saw — the tool
  9. file — a line of people
  10. kid — to tease
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. suit — in cards
  14. row — to paddle
  15. suit — clothes
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. file — a document
  19. row — a line
  20. saw — the tool
  21. wound — an injury
  22. can — a tin
  23. can — a tin
  24. file — a tool

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