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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. cell — a phone
  4. pop — to visit
  5. pop — music
  6. kid — to tease
  7. bore — to tire
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — what's left
  10. sharp — clever
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. bore — to drill
  14. kick — in football
  15. spring — of water
  16. cell — in biology
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. spring — the season
  21. rest — a break
  22. kid — child
  23. spring — a coil
  24. sharp — exactly

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