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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 120 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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. race — humankind
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. file — a tool
  5. can — to be able to
  6. race — a contest
  7. squash — to crush
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. pitch — completely
  10. file — a document
  11. can — a tin
  12. file — a line of people
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. squash — the sport
  15. content — happy
  16. kid — child
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. can — a tin
  19. kid — to tease
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. content — the amount
  23. race — the arms race
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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