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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. pound — a weight
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. kid — child
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. cold — an illness
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. kid — to tease
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. cold — not warm
  14. row — to paddle
  15. content — happy
  16. row — a line
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. toast — bread
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. content — the amount
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. hide — to keep secret

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