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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. roll — a cake
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. stem — to come from
  8. roll — a list
  9. clip — a video
  10. deal — to handle
  11. kid — child
  12. clip — to cut
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. clip — for paper
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. shower — to wash
  22. kid — to tease
  23. shower — rain
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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