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

Word bank: mate · dip · kid · bark · cell · fan · bat · firm

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. mate — to breed
  4. bark — to shout
  5. firm — a company
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. cell — in biology
  8. firm — decided
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. kid — child
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. mate — a friend
  15. bat — the animal
  16. kid — to tease
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. cell — a phone
  19. dip — to sink
  20. mate — a partner
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. firm — steady
  24. cell — in a prison

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