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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. wake — a trail
  3. row — to paddle
  4. cap — a lid
  5. row — a line
  6. kid — child
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. kid — to tease
  10. scale — in music
  11. bank — for money
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. cap — a hat
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. cap — of ice
  19. wind — moving air
  20. bank — for money
  21. wind — moving air
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. bank — of a river
  24. scale — size or range

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