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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: cabinet · hand · charge · bear · kid · saw · file · pitch

  1. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. bear — the animal
  3. hand — help
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. saw — the tool
  6. kid — to tease
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. file — a tool
  9. charge — a price
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. kid — child
  13. hand — in cards
  14. charge — electricity
  15. bear — the animal
  16. pitch — completely
  17. file — a document
  18. saw — the tool
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. charge — in control
  23. file — a line of people
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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