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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. kid — to tease
  4. saw — the tool
  5. bank — for money
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. band — a music group
  8. bank — for money
  9. can — to be able to
  10. kid — child
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. shower — rain
  14. row — to paddle
  15. can — a tin
  16. bank — of a river
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. band — a ring
  19. shower — to wash
  20. wake — a trail
  21. row — a line
  22. can — a tin
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. saw — the 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