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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. shower — to wash
  3. mark — a trace
  4. kid — to tease
  5. squash — to crush
  6. mark — a grade
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. ground — crushed
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. cold — not warm
  11. kid — child
  12. squash — the sport
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. ground — the earth
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. ground — a position
  18. shower — rain
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. cold — an illness
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. ruler — a monarch

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