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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 ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. pop — to visit
  3. chest — of your body
  4. saw — the tool
  5. current — happening now
  6. pop — soda
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. pop — music
  9. kid — to tease
  10. current — electric
  11. club — for golf
  12. spring — a coil
  13. lie — to recline
  14. chest — a box
  15. spring — of water
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. chest — of your body
  18. spring — the season
  19. kid — child
  20. current — of water
  21. club — for dancing
  22. club — a group
  23. saw — the tool
  24. lie — an untruth

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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