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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. kid — child
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. content — the amount
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. cell — in biology
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. kid — to tease
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. squash — to crush
  12. squash — the sport
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. deal — to handle
  18. content — happy
  19. cell — a phone
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. sharp — clever

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