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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 need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. kid — to tease
  3. ground — crushed
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. wind — moving air
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. bore — to tire
  9. wind — moving air
  10. saw — the tool
  11. ground — the earth
  12. kid — child
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. saw — the tool
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. ground — a position
  19. bore — to drill
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — an illness
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. mouse — for a computer

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