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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 had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. kid — child
  3. capital — a city
  4. kid — to tease
  5. staff — a stick
  6. field — for sport
  7. mate — a friend
  8. mate — to breed
  9. staff — employees
  10. wound — an injury
  11. mate — a partner
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. field — a subject
  15. rock — music
  16. capital — money
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. staff — employees
  19. wound — an injury
  20. field — farmland
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. rock — a stone
  24. ruler — a monarch

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