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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. mate — a friend
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. kid — child
  6. mate — a partner
  7. content — happy
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. kid — to tease
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. tube — a container
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. vault — a safe
  15. cap — a hat
  16. bat — the animal
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. cap — a lid
  20. content — the amount
  21. cap — of ice
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. tube — the underground

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