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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. court — for sport
  4. kid — to tease
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. clip — to cut
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. race — the arms race
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. clip — for paper
  11. race — humankind
  12. court — of law
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. court — of a king
  18. kid — child
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. snap — to click
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. clip — a video
  24. race — a contest

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