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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: kid · roll · mate · hand · saw · jam · board · wound

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. saw — the tool
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. hand — in cards
  6. kid — to tease
  7. mate — a partner
  8. wound — an injury
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. roll — a cake
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. kid — child
  16. mate — a friend
  17. board — to get on
  18. hand — help
  19. saw — the tool
  20. mate — to breed
  21. board — a committee
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. jam — a tight spot

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