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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. kid — child
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. kid — to tease
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. fine — high quality
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. dip — to sink
  15. kick — in football
  16. shower — rain
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. fine — all right
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. cabinet — ministers

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