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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. dip — to sink
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. snap — to click
  5. current — electric
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. capital — money
  13. file — a line of people
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. current — of water
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. file — a document
  19. current — happening now
  20. kid — to tease
  21. kid — child
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. file — a tool
  24. capital — a city

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