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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. wind — moving air
  6. kid — to tease
  7. spell — magic
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. swing — to play on
  10. wind — moving air
  11. can — to be able to
  12. swing — in golf
  13. swing — music
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. can — a tin
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. spell — a short time
  20. spell — letters
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. kid — child
  23. wake — a trail
  24. can — a tin

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