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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: chair · bear · bay · kid · nail · deal · snap · drill

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. chair — a leader
  5. kid — child
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. bear — the animal
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. deal — to handle
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. kid — to tease
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. snap — to click
  17. drill — a practice
  18. drill — army training
  19. drill — the tool
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. bear — the animal
  24. nail — on a finger

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