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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. kid — to tease
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. cell — in biology
  7. kid — child
  8. ground — the earth
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. ground — a position
  12. object — an aim
  13. toast — bread
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. object — to protest
  16. ground — crushed
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. object — a thing
  22. cell — a phone
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. hide — animal skin

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