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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 120 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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. kid — child
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. bound — obliged
  6. ball — a great time
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. bound — tied together
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. kid — to tease
  13. game — wild animals
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. wind — moving air
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. ball — a dance
  21. wax — to grow
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. game — a match

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