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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. kid — to tease
  4. current — of water
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. foot — a measure
  7. scale — in music
  8. drill — a practice
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. prune — to trim
  11. scale — size or range
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. prune — to trim
  14. current — happening now
  15. drill — army training
  16. file — a tool
  17. file — a document
  18. chip — for betting
  19. chip — to eat
  20. current — electric
  21. file — a line of people
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. drill — the tool
  24. kid — child

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