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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. drill — army training
  3. chest — of your body
  4. mine — for digging
  5. charge — electricity
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. kid — child
  8. deal — to handle
  9. drill — a practice
  10. squash — to crush
  11. chest — a box
  12. drill — the tool
  13. squash — the sport
  14. kid — to tease
  15. chest — of your body
  16. charge — in control
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. lean — to bend
  22. charge — a price
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. lean — thin

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