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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 116 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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. pop — to visit
  3. squash — the sport
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. scale — size or range
  6. dip — to sink
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. pop — soda
  9. pop — music
  10. squash — to crush
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. plane — a tool
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. kid — to tease
  16. drill — the tool
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. drill — a practice
  19. drill — army training
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. wake — a trail
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. kid — child
  24. scale — in music

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