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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: kid · race · straw · shower · sharp · deal · drill · cap

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. race — humankind
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. shower — rain
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. deal — to handle
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. cap — a hat
  12. drill — the tool
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. drill — a practice
  15. cap — of ice
  16. shower — to wash
  17. sharp — clever
  18. drill — army training
  19. kid — to tease
  20. race — the arms race
  21. kid — child
  22. cap — a lid
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. race — a contest

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