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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. present — there
  3. present — a gift
  4. key — for a lock
  5. ground — the earth
  6. kid — to tease
  7. key — in music
  8. kid — child
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. present — the time now
  11. tear — to rip
  12. tear — from crying
  13. key — the most important part
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. tear — from crying
  18. ground — crushed
  19. cell — in biology
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. ground — a position
  23. cell — a phone
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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