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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. kid — child
  3. file — a line of people
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. file — a document
  6. land — ground
  7. kid — to tease
  8. wind — moving air
  9. ball — a dance
  10. land — a country
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. ball — a great time
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. date — the fruit
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. file — a tool
  18. wind — moving air
  19. can — a tin
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. can — a tin
  22. pound — a weight
  23. land — to come down
  24. can — to be able 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