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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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. game — a match
  3. cap — a hat
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. game — wild animals
  6. kid — child
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. rash — a series
  9. kid — to tease
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. board — a committee
  12. rash — hasty
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. saw — the tool
  15. saw — the tool
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. board — to get on
  19. cap — of ice
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. date — the fruit
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. cap — a lid

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