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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: present · race · kick · saw · content · kid

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. content — the amount
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. kid — to tease
  8. kick — in football
  9. content — happy
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. present — a gift
  12. saw — the tool
  13. race — the arms race
  14. present — the time now
  15. kid — child
  16. race — a contest
  17. saw — the tool
  18. race — humankind

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