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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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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: spring · saw · suit · land · ball · kid · press · bore

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — to tease
  4. suit — clothes
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. land — to come down
  7. land — a country
  8. spring — of water
  9. ball — a dance
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bore — to tire
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. press — to push
  14. spring — a coil
  15. saw — the tool
  16. press — newspapers
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. ball — a great time
  19. land — ground
  20. saw — the tool
  21. press — a publisher
  22. suit — in cards
  23. suit — to fit
  24. spring — the season

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