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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. hand — help
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. march — the month
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hand — in cards
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. march — music
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. march — the month
  16. roll — a cake
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. kid — child
  19. kid — to tease
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. branch — a division
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. roll — a list
  24. roll — on a roll

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