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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: bat · key · kid · tear · hide · plane · bowl · pound

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. key — in music
  3. tear — from crying
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. tear — from crying
  11. plane — a tool
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. pound — a weight
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. bat — the animal
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. kid — to tease
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. key — for a lock
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. key — the most important part
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. tear — to rip
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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