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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. tube — a container
  3. stock — shares
  4. kid — to tease
  5. swing — music
  6. pit — a hole
  7. fall — to drop
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. fall — the season
  12. tube — the underground
  13. pit — in a race
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. land — to come down
  16. stock — goods
  17. land — a country
  18. fall — to drop
  19. swing — to play on
  20. kid — child
  21. land — ground
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. swing — in golf

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