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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. lean — thin
  6. object — to protest
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. lean — to bend
  9. drill — the tool
  10. rock — a stone
  11. drill — a practice
  12. kid — child
  13. rock — music
  14. drill — army training
  15. chest — a box
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. chest — of your body
  18. object — a thing
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. kid — to tease
  21. chest — of your body
  22. perch — the fish
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. object — an aim

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