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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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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: ruler · tube · mouse · kid · fan · chest · cell · rash

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. rash — a series
  3. tube — the underground
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — a phone
  8. cell — in biology
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. chest — of your body
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. chest — of your body
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. chest — a box
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. rash — hasty
  20. kid — child
  21. tube — a container
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. fan — to cool the air

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