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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. kid — to tease
  4. chair — a leader
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. face — part of the head
  7. dip — to sink
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. court — of law
  11. face — to confront
  12. snap — to click
  13. kid — child
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. court — for sport
  16. face — to point toward
  17. cell — in biology
  18. bulb — for light
  19. cell — a phone
  20. bulb — for light
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. court — of a king

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