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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. mug — to rob
  4. prune — to trim
  5. kid — to tease
  6. prune — to trim
  7. mug — a face
  8. hand — help
  9. march — the month
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. mug — a cup
  12. march — music
  13. branch — a division
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. march — the month
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. kid — child
  19. scale — in music
  20. hand — in cards
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. toast — bread
  24. scale — size or range

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