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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. kid — child
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. bat — the animal
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. content — happy
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. kick — in football
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. stock — shares
  15. mine — for digging
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. stock — goods
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. kid — to tease
  23. content — the amount
  24. bat — for baseball

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